Modern WisdomHow To Breathe Like A Yogi - Dylan Werner | Modern Wisdom Podcast 282
CHAPTERS
- 0:00 – 0:15
Why breathing is the most important habit you have
Dylan opens by reframing breathing as the most frequent behavior you perform, making its quality disproportionately influential. The conversation sets the tone: changing how you breathe can change how you live, move, and respond.
- •Breath happens constantly; technique matters
- •"How you do one thing is how you do everything" applied to breathing
- •Breathing as a foundation for performance, mindset, and health
- 0:15 – 1:16
Yoga in Bali, studios vs home practice, and Bhakti/kirtan devotion
Chris asks about Dylan’s yoga routine in Canggu and whether he attends studios. Dylan explains he mostly practices at home but does go to kirtan, introducing Bhakti yoga as a devotional branch of the tradition.
- •Home practice vs studio culture in Bali
- •Kirtan: mantra singing with harmonium/drums
- •Bhakti yoga as the yoga of devotion
- 1:16 – 5:47
Yoga as a full philosophy: Sutras, Eight Limbs, and “returning to truth”
Chris admits he didn’t realize yoga included a robust philosophy beyond movement. Dylan outlines classical roots like Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and explains how yoga extends into conduct, perception, and life orientation—not just asana.
- •Patanjali’s Eight Limbs as a path toward enlightenment
- •Yoga as interpretive philosophy, similar to religious texts
- •Yoga encompasses breathing, thinking, behavior—not only stretching
- •Teacher framing: yoga as “returning to truth/wholeness”
- 5:47 – 12:58
Does yoga’s meaning leave the mat? Presence, intention, and the ‘sat’ present moment
Chris wonders if modern yoga misses the deeper aspects. Dylan shares how adrenaline sports helped him experience presence briefly, but yoga trained sustained presence through intention, using the concept of “sat” (unchanging truth) as the present moment.
- •Many people take what they need; no judgment of others’ paths
- •Extreme sports induce presence but often without intention
- •Living in future/past vs inhabiting the present
- •Sat: the present moment as the unchanging window on change
- •Yoga as mind–body–breath integration through intentional practice
- 12:58 – 15:30
Presence through intensity: BDSM analogy, habituation, and why stimulus stops working
Chris connects extreme sports to forced presence, quoting “Nothing captures attention like a whip.” Dylan agrees but adds the key limitation: external stimulus habituates, so you eventually dissociate or chase the next hit—driving the search for a more sustainable method.
- •Intensity forces attention into the moment
- •Risk and consequence keep attention locked in extreme sports
- •Habituation reduces the presence benefit over time
- •Chasing “the next jump” replaces enjoying the current one
- 15:30 – 20:26
Why Dylan wrote a breathing book: pranayama, tools, and athletic performance focus
Dylan explains breathwork has always been central to his yoga, even if social media highlights the physical side. He describes pranayama as a toolset that can influence physical, emotional, and energetic states—recently emphasizing performance outcomes.
- •Breathwork isn’t new in his practice; it’s just less visible online
- •Pranayama as a long-term study and teaching focus (years of workshops)
- •Breath links to physical/emotional/energetic states
- •Current emphasis: using breath to improve athletic performance
- •Serendipitous publishing path that led specifically to a breath book
- 20:26 – 24:36
What people misunderstand about breathwork: ‘why’ matters and practices aren’t magic
Chris asks what most people get wrong. Dylan argues it’s mainly a lack of understanding: people perform techniques because they’re told to, without grasping mechanisms, best-use cases, or how to adapt practices thoughtfully.
- •Many do pranayama/breathwork without understanding purpose
- •Example: alternate nostril breathing explained with vague “energy” language
- •Traditional “boxed” practices can discourage experimentation/adaptation
- •Online claims often list unrealistic “100 benefits” per technique
- •Core mistake: not understanding potential and specific effects
- 24:36 – 25:47
Foundations of good daily breathing: nasal breathing, slower/less, and CO₂’s role
Dylan lays out baseline principles: breathe through the nose and reduce unnecessary volume. He explains why ‘more breathing’ doesn’t equal more oxygen, introduces CO₂’s importance, and begins unpacking blood chemistry and nervous system effects.
- •Nose breathing filters, humidifies, and naturally down-regulates airflow
- •Over-breathing primarily blows off CO₂ rather than increasing oxygenation
- •Breath rate/volume influence sympathetic vs parasympathetic balance
- •CO₂ is necessary for effective oxygen delivery (not just a waste gas)
- 25:47 – 31:42
The Bohr effect, HRV, hyperventilation symptoms, and why Wim Hof ‘works’
Dylan connects CO₂, pH, and oxygen delivery via the Bohr effect, then uses hyperventilation as a practical demonstration of hypocapnia. He explains breath-holding after rapid breathing (Wim Hof style) through CO₂ suppression and delayed urge-to-breathe, tying it to performance adaptations.
- •Bohr effect: higher CO₂/lower pH reduces hemoglobin’s O₂ affinity, improving tissue delivery
- •Hyperventilation causes dizziness/numbness/spasms via low CO₂ (hypocapnia)
- •Breathing drive is largely CO₂-driven, not O₂-driven
- •Wim Hof: rapid breathing lowers CO₂, enabling longer holds; holds then drive adaptations
- •Breath holds + hypoxia/hypercapnia training linked to performance changes
- 31:42 – 43:40
Breathing for performance: red blood cells, efficiency analogies, and nasal training under load
Dylan describes how breathing patterns and training affect oxygen transport capacity and efficiency, including red blood cell dynamics. He gives practical performance guidance: train nose-breathing during exercise and slow down until it’s possible, using efficiency as the lever.
- •Body adapts to demand: RBC production/availability responds to training signals
- •Over-breathing can reduce delivery efficiency; CO₂ supports unloading O₂ to tissues
- •Analogy: add more ‘train cars’ (RBCs) and let ‘passengers’ (O₂) off efficiently
- •Nasal breathing during training as a key constraint to improve efficiency
- •UFC/athletic contexts: fixing chest/mouth breathing can quickly improve performance
- 43:40 – 49:01
How much can 10–20 minutes/day change? Triggers, breath awareness, and spleen contraction
Chris questions whether brief practice can override day-long habits. Dylan distinguishes goals: relaxation practices help immediately but don’t last all day; performance gains require greater volume/consistency and involve mechanisms like splenic contraction increasing circulating red blood cells.
- •Daily habit change begins with awareness—especially nose breathing
- •Yawning as an over-breathing ‘event’ that Dylan counterbalances with a short hold
- •Athletic gains require more training volume than 10–20 minutes for many people
- •Splenic contraction during sustained hypoxic demand releases stored RBCs (second wind)
- •Different retention styles (exhale vs inhale holds) train different adaptations
- 49:01 – 53:53
Breath as a tool (not a cure-all): box breathing, sleep, motivation, and polyvagal framing
Dylan cautions against “breath fixes everything” biohacking claims. He positions breathing as a versatile lever that can shift state—calm, balance, mobilization—while noting that sleep, diet, stimulants, and stress still matter; breath supports change rather than replacing it.
- •Breath doesn’t ‘fix’ life problems; it can create the conditions to address them
- •Box/square breathing for nervous system balance and reduced reactivity
- •Fast practices (Kapalbhati/Bhastrika) to mobilize energy and motivation
- •Polyvagal view: sympathetic can mean safe mobilization, not only fight/flight
- •Breath is one pillar alongside sleep, diet, movement, stress management
- 53:53 – 1:06:44
Bandhas and ‘energy’: translating yogic maps into modern physiology and balance systems
Chris asks about energetic locks (bandhas). Dylan explains the three major bandhas and broadens into what “energy” can mean across domains, arguing yoga’s models (nadis, gunas, vayus) are maps that can align with Western physiology when understood as different representations of the same terrain.
- •Bandhas: Mulabandha (root), Uddiyana (navel), Jalandhara (throat)
- •Energy defined across thermal/electrical/kinetic and subjective ‘felt’ states
- •Yoga mapped nadis before modern nerve science; different language, similar phenomena
- •Balancing doing/rajas, having-resting/tamas, and being/sattva
- •Book framework: multiple systems of balance shown together (Venn diagram/map analogy)
- 1:06:44 – 1:25:17
Meaningful closing: book excerpt, practical breathwork ‘anywhere,’ and the guided mini-sequence
Chris reads the book’s closing paragraph, then Dylan demonstrates how breathwork fits into everyday life (TV, commuting, between Tube stops). Dylan teaches a short three-part sequence—Kapalabhati, Bhastrika, and Agni Sar—explaining mechanics, safety notes, and intended training effect (respiratory strength/heat-building).
- •Breathing framed as learning to live; meaning created breath-by-breath
- •Micro-practices in daily contexts (commutes, between stops, morning routine)
- •Three-practice sequence taught: Kapalabhati (forced exhale/passive inhale), Bhastrika (forced in/out), Agni Sar (exhale hold + abdominal pumping)
- •Technique cues: avoid shoulder lifting; train 360° rib expansion; do on empty stomach if possible
- •Immediate effect: energized state via sympathetic activation; suggested repetition 5–10 minutes
- 1:25:17 – 1:31:47
Final takeaways: sympathetic system isn’t the enemy, stress appraisal, and where to find Dylan’s work
Chris highlights a key lesson: the sympathetic system is useful and only problematic when chronic and unsafe. They close by discussing stress interpretation, leaning into discomfort for growth, then Dylan shares where to buy the book and follow his work online.
- •Sympathetic vs parasympathetic: utility depends on context and safety
- •Stress response differs based on whether it’s viewed positively or negatively
- •Discomfort as a chosen training stimulus vs threat (judgment shapes experience)
- •Calls to action: The Illuminated Breath, website, and Instagram
