5.5 seconds in, 5.5 seconds out, around 5.5 breaths a minute. A slow, even wave for longer sessions of calm focus.
Coherent breathing slows the breath to a little over five breaths per minute, with inhales and exhales of equal length and no pauses. The aim is less about relaxing for its own sake and more about a steady physiological rhythm in which breathing and heart rate rise and fall together. The term was popularised by Stephen Elliott and later by the psychiatrists Richard Brown and Patricia Gerbarg, who teach it in their breathing programmes.
Coherent breathing is best for longer, unhurried practice: a morning routine, an evening wind-down, or a regular slot alongside meditation. Because it takes a few minutes to settle in, it works better as a daily habit than as an emergency tool; for a quick reset, the physiological sigh is faster. Some people move between HRV 5, coherent breathing and HRV 6 to find the pace that feels most natural.
The pattern draws on research into heart rate variability biofeedback, including work by Paul Lehrer and colleagues showing that each person has a resonance breathing rate, usually between about 4.5 and 6.5 breaths per minute, at which heart-rate oscillations are largest. Coherent breathing uses a fixed rate within that range. Studies have associated regular practice with higher heart rate variability and lower self-reported stress, but many were small, and it is no substitute for medical care.
Practice sitting or lying down; never in water or while driving. Stop if you feel dizzy.
Long sessions can leave you light-headed if you over-breathe. Keep the breath soft rather than deep, and stop if you feel dizzy or unwell.