James Nestor quotes

James Nestor is an award-winning journalist and author known for his groundbreaking work on breath and breathing. His book "Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art" has received critical acclaim for its exploration of the importance of proper breathing techniques for optimal health. Nestor's writing has been featured in publications such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, and National Geographic. With a background in environmental journalism, Nestor brings a unique perspective to the study of breath and its impact on overall well-being. Learn more about James Nestor and his work by visiting his website today.

William Bates, M.D. argued you could improve eyesight by covering your eyes and shaking your head back and forth.

- James Nestor

When stressed breathe in to count of 4, hold 4, exhale 6, hold 2 and repeat 10x. Millions of people do this everyday. It works, man!

- James Nestor

To energize, cover your left nostril and breathe in 30x quickly through your right nostril for 'sun breath'.

- James Nestor

Thomas Edison and Einstein used the lucid wakeful/sleeping state of 'hypnagogia' to solve problems. You can too.

- James Nestor

The same ingredient that gets cats bonkers off catnip is in red ants, and was the reason Native Americans ate ants to get high.

- James Nestor

Sixty percent of doctor visits are related to stress. Relax. Breathe in and out thru your left nostil, mouth closed, 30x once a day. Do it.

- James Nestor

Relax your tongue. No, really. Literally relax your tongue. You will feel your mind quickly calm and pulse soften within mere moments.

- James Nestor

Moon Breath: To de-clutter your mind, cover your right nostril with your right thumb and breathe in 30x with your left nostril.

- James Nestor

Ancient Greeks used dill to make love potions (i.e., roofies) that would lull (i.e., drug) dates into caring arms.

- James Nestor

Ancient Greeks and Newton were fans of phosphene highs – the psychedelic patterns produced when pressure is applied to the retinal glands.

- James Nestor

Ancient Egyptians and Chinese cured illnesses with different colored light. Modern ultrasound works on the same premises.

- James Nestor

67% of people who ate a bit of certain British cheeses before bed reported totally staggering lucid dreams. You can too.

- James Nestor

16th Century doctors used the flesh of a freshly hanged man beaten into a powder as a cure-all for sickness.

- James Nestor

Prayer heals, especially when it’s practiced at 5.5 breaths a minute.

- James Nestor

It turns out that when breathing at a normal rate, our lungs will absorb only about a quarter of the available oxygen in the air. The majority of that oxygen is exhaled back out. By taking longer breaths, we allow our lungs to soak up more in fewer breaths.

- James Nestor

Expression is the opposite of depression! Go for it!

- James Nestor

Each breath we draw in should take about three seconds, and each breath out should take four. We’ll then continue the same short inhales while lengthening the exhales to a five, six, and seven count as the run progresses.

- James Nestor

A last word on slow breathing. It goes by another name: prayer. When Buddhist monks chant their most popular mantra, Om Mani Padme Hum, each spoken phrase lasts six seconds, with six seconds to inhale before the chant starts again. The traditional chant of Om, the 'sacred sound of the universe' used in Jainism and other traditions, takes six seconds to sing, with a pause of about six seconds to inhale.

- James Nestor