Why You’ve Been Breathing Wrong Most Of Your Life

Mike Maher frames breathwork as “breathplay” and says it can be simplified into two broad categories: practices where you “breathe less than you need” (functional breathing) and those where you “breathe more than you need” (hyperventilation-style practices). His emphasis throughout is to prioritize everyday breathing fundamentals before experimenting with intense techniques.

Mike argues the nose provides key functions—filtering particles, warming/cooling and humidifying air, adding resistance/pressure, and producing nasal nitric oxide; he also claims nitric oxide can kill bacteria and that humming increases nitric oxide. He contrasts this with mouth breathing, which he describes as a stressful “backup valve” meant mainly for emergencies.

Mike claims mouth breathing can lead to blowing off too much CO2, lowering CO2 tolerance and shifting the body into a cycle of air hunger and faster breathing. He explains this via chemoreceptors that respond strongly to CO2 rises and uses the oxygen–hemoglobin “affinity” idea to argue that low CO2 makes oxygen delivery to tissues less efficient.

Mike says there’s an important distinction between how you breathe all day (the ~25,000 daily breaths) and deliberate breathing exercises; he notes some mouth-breathing exercises (like sighing) can have specific purposes. His main claim is that the goal is to be nasal-breathing most of the day while still “playing” with techniques when appropriate.

Both discuss measurement and tracking: Mike mentions Patrick McKeown’s “maximum breathlessness test” (exhale, hold, walk, count steps) and also a breath-hold measure until the first impulse to breathe. He shares his own example of improving a breath-hold score over about six weeks by consistently practicing slower breathing with mild air hunger.