Box breathing
Box breathing is a four-part pattern: breathe in for four seconds, hold for four, breathe out for four, hold for four, then start again. Every phase is the same length — that is the box. The timer on this page runs it for you, with a tone at every change, so you can close your eyes and just follow the sound.
Before you start
Stop if dizzy. Never in water or while driving. Pregnant or have a health condition? Ask a doctor.
- If you are pregnant, or live with a heart, lung or blood-pressure condition, or a history of fainting or panic attacks, talk to a doctor before you start.
- Never practice while driving, cycling, or in or near water.
- Stop and breathe normally if you feel dizzy, lightheaded or short of breath, or have pain or pressure in your chest.
Done
Sound & length
Tap Share, then Add to Home Screen.
Open your browser menu, then choose Install app or Add to Home screen.
| # | Phase | Seconds |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Inhale | 4 |
| 2 | Hold | 4 |
| 3 | Exhale | 4 |
| 4 | Hold | 4 |
Want other numbers? Open this pattern in the custom breathing timer.
How to do it
- Sit upright somewhere you won’t need to move for a few minutes. Rest your hands and let your shoulders drop.
- Breathe out fully before you start, so the first inhale begins from empty.
- Tap the speaker in the corner of the timer to turn the sound on — it’s off until you choose it.
- Press start. The timer counts down from three.
- Breathe in through your nose while the dot travels the first arc.
- Hold for the second arc. Keep your throat and jaw loose rather than clamped shut.
- Breathe out through your nose or mouth, whichever is easier, for the third arc.
- Hold again for the last arc, then let the next inhale begin on its own.
Four to eight cycles is a normal first session — about one to two minutes. The timer keeps every phase at four seconds. If that feels long, let each breath be smaller and lighter rather than deeper, and run fewer cycles; coherent breathing has no holds at all.
Where the pattern comes from
Box breathing is taught in military, police and first-responder training, where it is known as tactical or four-square breathing, and it is also used in sports warm-ups and meditation apps. It is a counting pattern, not a treatment.
What makes it a box
All four phases are equal, so the four phase markers sit evenly around the circle, where the corners of a square would be. The dot travels around the circle at a steady speed, so each phase takes the same quarter of the lap. In a pattern with unequal phases, such as 4-7-8, the markers sit at unequal distances.
Research
Studies that examined this pattern. Each one describes what was measured in the people who took part, not what the pattern will do for you.
A one-month remote study that compared five minutes a day of box breathing with cyclic sighing, cyclic hyperventilation and mindfulness meditation, recording self-reported mood, breathing rate and resting heart rate.
Balban et al. (2023). Brief structured respiration practices enhance mood and reduce physiological arousal. Cell Reports Medicine. doi:10.1016/j.xcrm.2022.100895
Questions
- How long is one cycle of box breathing?
- One cycle takes 16 seconds: inhale for 4, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4. The timer marks each change with a tone.
- How long is a session on this timer?
- The timer opens with 8 cycles, about 2 minutes. You can set a different number of cycles, or a length in minutes, in the timer settings before you start.
- Who should not do box breathing?
- If you are pregnant, or live with a heart, lung or blood-pressure condition, or a history of fainting or panic attacks, talk to a doctor before you start. Never practice while driving, cycling, or in or near water. Stop and breathe normally if you feel dizzy, lightheaded or short of breath, or have pain or pressure in your chest. This is not medical advice.
- Does the box breathing timer work offline?
- Yes. After your first visit the page keeps working without a connection, and you can install it to your home screen like an app. There is no sign-up and no app store.
Box breathing GIF
Download this box breathing GIF for slides, Notion, email or a classroom screen, in a light or a dark version. It loops one 16-second cycle. For sound cues and a session timer, use the timer above.
Free to reuse under the CC BY 4.0 license with credit to Breathe Cadence. License details
Other techniques
Same timer, different pattern. Each one opens with its own rhythm and its own default session length.
4-7-8 breathing
A short inhale, a long hold, a longer exhale.
4-7-8 seconds
Coherent breathing
Even in and out, no holds, six breaths a minute.
5-5 seconds
Diaphragmatic breathing
Slow belly breaths, the exhale longer than the inhale.
4-6 seconds
Physiological sigh
Two inhales back to back, then one long exhale.
3-1-6 seconds
4-6-8 breathing
Like 4-7-8, with the hold a second shorter.
4-6-8 seconds
Set your own pace
The same timer with the numbers left to you: pick a preset, or step each phase up and down.
Published , updated . Written by the Breathe Cadence team, from personal practice rather than clinical training.