luten

The steps

You don't need an app, a timer or anything else. Count in your head and you can start now.

1. Sit up straight or lie on your back.
2. Put the tip of your tongue on the ridge just behind your top front teeth, and leave it there until you finish.
3. Open your lips and blow all your air out through your mouth, past your tongue. It makes a whoosh.
4. Close your lips. Count to 4 in your head as you breathe in through your nose.
5. Stop breathing and count to 7.
6. Blow out through your mouth again, with the whoosh, and count to 8.
7. That is one cycle. Go back to step 4.

Kaiser Permanente says to repeat the steps 3 to 4 times. Cleveland Clinic describes one cycle and then three more. A handout from Dr. Andrew Weil, published by the University of Arizona's Center for Integrative Medicine, says no more than 4 at a time for the first month, then up to 8 if you wish.

When to stop or take care

Some people feel lightheaded when they start. Cleveland Clinic mentions a little lightheadedness or shortness of breath when you are new to it.

• Sit or lie down. Medical News Today suggests this because of the risk of dizziness or a fall. The Family Medicine editorial suggests sitting when you first practice.
• If you feel lightheaded, Medical News Today says to stop or to change how long your breaths are.
• If you have a respiratory condition, Samaritans says it may be wise to ask a medical professional first. It also says to take care, and to think about having someone with you, if breathing exercises have left you lightheaded or you have hyperventilated while focusing on your breath.

If anything feels wrong, stop and breathe normally. Ask a doctor if you are unsure.

How fast to count

The numbers are counts, not fixed seconds. The Weil handout cares about the ratio of 4 to 7 to 8 rather than the seconds. A Family Medicine journal editorial says the same about counting speed.

• At one count a second, one cycle takes 19 seconds: 4, then 7, then 8. Luten counts at this speed.
• If the hold is too long at that speed, count faster and keep all three numbers. The Weil handout and Samaritans both say to speed it up. Medical News Today gives a shorter version of the same ratio: 2 seconds in, 3.5 held, 4 out.
• Otherwise, choose what suits you. Cleveland Clinic says not to rush it or drag it out.

What to watch for

• The first breath out. The first cycle starts with your lungs empty, so breathe all the way out before the first count of 4.
• Your mouth on the breath in. The breath in goes through your nose with your lips closed. Only the breath out uses your mouth.
• Your tongue. It stays in place for all three parts, and the air goes around it. If that feels awkward, the Weil handout says to purse your lips a little.
• The hold. Cleveland Clinic says to hold gently, without straining. If you keep running short at 7, count faster.
• The breath out. It is the longest part. Kaiser Permanente's health encyclopedia says to aim to be empty by the time you reach 8.
• Changing one number. Cutting only the hold, or only the breath out, gives you a different pattern. To shorten it, speed up all three together.

How to follow along in Luten

Luten is a sound app for iPhone and Android. Its Breath Work card keeps the count for you.

If nothing is playing, a sound starts when you tap the circle.

1. Open Luten and tap Stress on the Home screen.
2. Find the Breath Work card. You can skip the question above it.
3. Tap the 4-7-8 button. Another button is selected when the screen opens. The selected one has a lighter border.
4. Breathe all the way out. Luten starts on Breathe In, so the first breath out is yours to do before you tap.
5. Tap the circle where it says Tap to Start.
6. Follow the circle. Breathe In counts down from 4, Hold counts down from 7, and Breathe Out counts down from 8. Each number lasts one second.
7. To stop, tap the circle again. It goes back to Tap to Start.

This is the circle before you start.

The circle grows on Breathe In and shrinks on Breathe Out. If your phone is set to reduce motion, it stays the same size.

The circle keeps going until you tap it or leave the screen, and a badge beside the title counts the cycles you finish. To switch to another button, stop first.

Luten doesn't keep the screen on here, so your phone's Auto-Lock can still turn it off, and the count may not carry on behind a locked screen. The sound keeps going after you stop the count. To stop it as well, use the pause button in the player at the bottom of the screen.

Try Luten

Sleep and focus sounds, on iPhone and Android. Free to download, with an optional subscription that starts with a 7 day free trial.

Questions

What is the difference between 4-7-8 and box breathing?

Box breathing has four equal parts: in for 4, hold for 4, out for 4, hold for 4. 4-7-8 has three parts of different lengths and no second hold. The steps above also add the tongue position and the whoosh through your mouth. Luten has both on the same card.

How many cycles of 4-7-8 breathing do the guides say?

Kaiser Permanente's health encyclopedia says 3 to 4 times. Cleveland Clinic describes one cycle and then three more. The Weil handout says no more than 4 at a time for the first month. We don't recommend a number, and Luten's circle keeps going until you tap it.

Does Luten say the counts out loud?

No. The words and numbers are on screen, so you need to see it.

Related guides

• How to do box breathingBox breathing is in for 4, hold for 4, out for 4, hold for 4. The steps to do it now with no app, and how the breathing circle in Luten counts it.

Sources

• Kaiser Permanente health encyclopedia: breathing exercises, 4-7-8 belly breathing: https://healthy.kaiserpermanente.org/health-wellness/health-encyclopedia/he.stress-management-breathing-exercises-for-relaxation.uz2255
• Cleveland Clinic: How To Do the 4-7-8 Breathing Exercise: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/4-7-8-breathing
• University of Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine: 4-7-8 Breath handout from Dr. Andrew Weil (copy hosted by Hunterdon Health): https://hunterdonhealth.org/sites/default/files/2024-12/4-7-8%20Breathinng.pdf
• Family Medicine (2023), editorial, via PubMed Central: Take a Deep Breath: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10622034/
• Medical News Today: 4-7-8 breathing: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324417
• Samaritans: 4-7-8 breathing: https://www.samaritans.org/support-us/corporate-partnerships/do-good-feel-good/ways-to-get-involved/activities-to-boost-wellbeing/4-7-8-breathing/