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Buteyko Breathing (Buteyko Method)

Breathe a little less, through your nose, and time a calm breath-hold to track your progress.

Also called: Buteyko Breathing Technique (BBT), Buteyko method, Reduced breathing, Light breathing

Buteyko breathing is a method of soft, reduced breathing through the nose, paired with a simple breath-hold test called the Control Pause. You breathe a little less than feels automatic, until you notice a mild, comfortable want for more air.

Within a few minutes you feel calmer, and your breath turns quieter and smoother. The Control Pause gives you one number to track over the weeks.

Pattern
Nose only, a little less air. Spoon's Standard level: in 2 s, out 3 s, pause 3 s
Session
5 minutes; the Control Pause test takes under a minute
Good for
Nose breathing, a quieter breath, a score to track
Level
Beginner
Origin
Konstantin Buteyko, Soviet Union, 1950s
Needs
iPhone or Apple Watch

Try it now

Breathe in 2 s · Breathe out 3 s · Pause 3 s

Follow the circle for a few rounds. In Spoon you can do it from your wrist and see your heart rate respond.

How to do it

  1. Sit upright with your mouth closed. Breathe through your nose for the whole session, pauses included.
  2. Take a few normal breaths and just notice them.
  3. Soften the inhale so it is quieter and a little smaller than usual.
  4. Let the exhale run a little longer, relaxed, never pushed.
  5. Rest in a short, easy pause before the next breath wants to come.
  6. Aim for light air hunger: a mild, tolerable want for more air. Never a struggle.
  7. If your heart races, your diaphragm twitches or you feel real distress, breathe normally for 30 to 60 seconds, then start again.
  8. Finish on an easy exhale. Let your breathing find its own pace and notice how you feel.

Benefits

  • Calmer within minutes

    Slow, quiet nose breathing settles you. Within a few minutes you feel calmer and steadier.

  • A quieter, smoother breath

    You learn what light breathing feels like, and your everyday breath gets softer with practice.

  • A number that shows your progress

    The Control Pause gives you one simple score, so you see your breathing change over the weeks.

  • Easy nose breathing

    Keeping your mouth closed and your breath soft gets easier every session.

What the research says

Konstantin Buteyko, a physiologist in the Soviet Union, developed the method in the 1950s. It rests on the idea that habitual over-breathing and low carbon dioxide drive respiratory disease[1]. That theory is not widely accepted in medicine, partly because research has not supported it[1].

Most trials tested Buteyko as an add-on to usual care in adults with asthma. In a blinded trial of 39 people aged 12 to 70, Buteyko practice cut reliever-inhaler use, with no change in lung function[4]. In another trial, the share of people with controlled asthma six months after training rose from 40 to 79 percent with Buteyko. With breathing and relaxation taught by a physiotherapist, it rose from 44 to 72 percent. Only the cut in inhaled steroid use was larger with Buteyko[5].

The one double-blind trial built to isolate the technique found no advantage. Fifty-seven adults learned either shallow nose breathing or simple upper-body exercises. Across both groups, reliever use fell 86 percent and inhaled steroid dose 50 percent, with no meaningful difference between them[6].

A 2020 Cochrane review pooled 22 studies with 2,880 adults across many breathing methods; only two of them involved Buteyko[3]. Breathing exercises improved quality of life at three months and eased hyperventilation symptoms, while the effect on asthma symptoms was unclear. Certainty ranged from moderate to very low[3].

How to take the Control Pause test

  • Rest quietly first; Oxygen Advantage suggests 10 minutes before its near-identical BOLT test[2]. Skip testing right after exercise or a meal, or when you are unwell.
  • Take one normal, silent breath in through your nose, and let one normal breath out.
  • Pinch your nose closed and start timing.
  • Stop at the first definite urge to breathe, or the first involuntary movement of your breathing muscles[2].
  • Release and breathe in calmly through your nose. If you have to gasp, you held too long and that reading does not count.
  • Test at the same time each day, such as first thing in the morning, so your numbers compare[2].

How to read your Control Pause

Oxygen Advantage reads its BOLT test, a close cousin of the Control Pause, roughly like this[2]. Buteyko teachers use a similar scale. These bands are a teaching guide, not a medical test: Oxygen Advantage says to track the score as your own baseline over time, not as a diagnosis[2]. Never stretch the hold to get a better number.

  • Under 10 seconds: everyday breathing tends to be noisy, irregular and effortful.
  • 10 to 20 seconds: breathing is often disturbed by a blocked nose, wheezing or coughing.
  • 20 to 30 seconds: resting breathing is fairly quiet and calm.
  • 40 seconds: an advanced training target, not a line between healthy and unhealthy.

Tips

  • Smaller, not stopped. Keep the breath moving gently instead of freezing it.
  • If your lips part or your breathing gets noisy, ease off and start again.
  • Take a normal breath before the Control Pause, never a deep one. Extra air only shifts the number.

Safety

  • Buteyko does not replace your asthma medicine. Never use it instead of your reliever inhaler during an asthma attack.
  • Never stop or cut a controller inhaler because of a Control Pause number. Talk to your doctor before any change.
  • Stop and breathe normally if your heart races, you feel dizzy, your diaphragm twitches or you feel real distress.
  • Never take the Control Pause test in water, or while driving or operating machinery.
  • Ask a doctor first if you are pregnant or have a significant heart or lung condition.

Buteyko in Spoon

Spoon's Buteyko has two modes. Light Breathing paces a soft nose breath with a short pause after each exhale, at three levels: Gentle (in 2 s, out 3 s, pause 2 s), Standard (2, 3, 3) and Extended (3, 4, 4).

CP Test times your Control Pause. You start the hold after a normal exhale and tap Stop at the first urge to breathe. Nothing counts down or buzzes during the hold, so nothing pushes you to hold longer. Spoon saves each score in whole seconds.

  • Sessions last 5 minutes by default.
  • Calm tones on each inhale and exhale, and your Apple Watch taps the phase changes.
  • With the voice guide on, the iPhone speaks the phase cues for Light Breathing. The CP Test stays silent.
  • Spoon shows your last and best Control Pause.
  • Light Breathing can be part of a playlist; the CP Test always runs on its own.
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Questions

What is a good Control Pause score?

In the Buteyko tradition and the closely related BOLT test, under 10 seconds goes with noisy, effortful breathing, 20 to 30 seconds with quiet, calm breathing at rest, and 40 seconds is an advanced training target. These are teaching guides, not medical cutoffs. Your own trend over weeks matters more than any single number.

How do you measure your Control Pause?

Sit quietly for a few minutes. Breathe in normally through your nose, breathe out normally, then pinch your nose and start timing. Stop at the first definite urge to breathe or the first twitch of your breathing muscles. Your next breath should be calm. If you have to gasp, you held too long.

Does Buteyko breathing help with asthma?

As an add-on to usual care, trials in people with asthma found less reliever-inhaler use, with no change in lung function. In the most careful trial, simple upper-body exercises did just as well. Buteyko never replaces your asthma medicine, and it is not for an asthma attack.

How long should you do Buteyko breathing?

Five to ten minutes, once or twice a day, is a common way to start. Spoon's default session is 5 minutes. Take your Control Pause at the same time each day so your scores compare.

Is Buteyko breathing safe?

Light breathing is gentle and low risk. Stop and breathe normally if your heart races, you feel dizzy or your diaphragm twitches. Keep the Control Pause a comfortable check, never a maximum hold, and never take it in water or while driving. Never cut asthma medicine because of a score; talk to your doctor first.

What is the difference between the Control Pause and the BOLT score?

They are close cousins. The Control Pause belongs to the Buteyko method; BOLT belongs to Oxygen Advantage. Both time a calm hold after a normal exhale, until the first definite urge to breathe. Oxygen Advantage itself says the two are closely related but not directly interchangeable, so compare your numbers within one test.

Sources

  1. Wikipedia. Buteyko method. Wikipedia, accessed 2026. en.wikipedia.org
  2. Oxygen Advantage. How to Measure Your BOLT Score. Oxygen Advantage. oxygenadvantage.com
  3. Santino TA, et al. Breathing exercises for adults with asthma. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2020. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  4. Bowler SD, Green A, Mitchell CA. Buteyko breathing techniques in asthma: a blinded randomised controlled trial. Medical Journal of Australia, 1998. mja.com.au
  5. Cowie RL, et al. A randomised controlled trial of the Buteyko technique as an adjunct to conventional management of asthma. Respiratory Medicine, 2008. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  6. Slader CA, et al. Double blind randomised controlled trial of two different breathing techniques in the management of asthma. Thorax, 2006. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Updated October 2026. This page is for education, not medical advice. If you have a heart, lung or blood pressure condition, epilepsy, or you are pregnant, ask your doctor before you start a breathing practice with holds or fast breathing.