TEACHERS OF BREATHWORK
If you are into cold water immersions or changing your energy state through breath, you’ll have heard of Wim Hof. If you are into yoga and/or Ayurveda, you’ll have heard of Pranayama, the practice of regulating breath using specific techniques. Breathwork (i.e. the conscious regulation of the breath through various exercises as opposed to what we do automatically to stay alive) is all around us these days, and with good reason. It can help calm the nervous system, help us sleep, strengthen our immune system… and so much more. Here are some people in the world sharing information on this natural skill that we so often neglect in the midst of our busy lives
James Nestor is a renowned writer and science-journalist, and author of Sunday Times Bestseller, Breathe. He brings a scientific approach to health and wellness, travelling all over the world to explore the many interpretations and explanations behind the breath. In his book he dives into the science behind how to breathe correctly to feel our best looking at pulmonology, psychology, biochemistry and human physiology - whilst still drawing on hundreds of years of ancient wisdom and the origins of the breathing practices he shares.
Rebecca Dennis is the founder of Breathing Tree, a platform dedicated to educating people about the power of breathwork. She is an international author, coach and workshop leader who has practising for over 20 years. Her goal is to impart people with breath skills that can have potentially life-changing effects on her students. Over the years, Rebecca has also trained in “coaching, anatomy and physiology, Swedish and deep tissue massage, acupressure, reiki and shamanic healing traditions from indigenous tribes and elders.”
Richie Bostock, AKA The Breath Guy, has kindly shared many of his breathwork skills with the East by West audience — namely through a #WellnessWednesdayWorkshop on IGTV during the first COVID lockdown. Richie is such a fantastic source of inspiration for learning how to breathe mindfully and reap the many benefits of this practice. He has even created a smartphone app named Flourish, which is a really handy way to get started on your breathwork journey.
Michael James Wong is the founder of Just Breathe, which includes a breathwork app, as well as courses and plenty of other resources for learning the basics of breathing for wellbeing. Michael is also an author, speaker, community leader and meditation teacher. I had the pleasure of appearing on his podcast The Quiet Life back in 2020, when we talked about how I discovered Ayurveda and what it means in the modern world.
Jasmine Marie is the founder and CEO of Black Girls Breathing, which provides a safe space for Black women to dive into the beautiful world of breathwork and take care of their mental health that way. Jasmine is a trauma and grief-informed breathwork practitioner and speaker, who is dedicated to making mental health resources more easily accessible for Black women. Black Girl Breathing organises a series of workshops for discovering breathwork, and has also become an active Instagram community.
Wim Hof has become something of a household name, whether you’re a spiritual seeker or not. Wim is also known as “The Iceman,” and is a Dutch athlete who undertakes extreme challenges such as climbing mountains in shorts and running in Arctic weather barefoot. He is the founder of the Wim Hof Method, which is founded on the three pillars of breathwork, cold therapy and commitment, to help people rediscover their innate connection to nature — which Wim believes has been lost.
Aicha McKenzie is the founder of BreatheByAMCK, which offers loads of incredible programmes for integrating breathwork into your life for greater wellbeing. Over the course of her career, Aicha has been a CEO, agent, model, gymnast, choreographer and more, and she brings her positivity and wisdom to her Instagram followers on the regular as well. Aicha generously agreed to share a breathing session with my own Instagram community back in 2020, which you can watch here.
In our fast-paced society, between caffeine, chocka schedules and technology, calm can be really difficult to come by. Like everyone on this list, Artur Paulins aims to help people reconnect with that sense of calm, working through anxiety and overwhelm using coaching and breathwork. He offers a number of resources and services to guide you gently towards developing breathwork skills
Niraj Naik is the founder of SOMA Breath, a “global breathwork school,” which cleverly combines the ancient wisdom of Pranayama with the latest science. Niraj offers courses, resources and an on-demand membership programme for you to integrate breathwork into your life in the way that works best for you.
Anders Olsson is another fixture in the breathwork world — and with good reason. Over the course of 10 years, he has helped tens of thousands of people find a greater sense of wellbeing through breathing, a practice he found after a lifetime of experiencing racing thoughts. Anders is the founder of Conscious Breathing, a method that helps people to find more energy, and become better able to relax.