Viram
  1. Viram
  2. Techniques
  3. Sama Vritti

Classical pranayama

Sama Vritti

Box breathing.

Say it SUH-muh VRIT-tee सम वृत्ति

  • Classical pranayama
  • Seated or lying
  • Short holds
  • 5 min to start
Rhythm in seconds

In 4 · Hold 4 · Out 4 · Rest 4

5 min · 19 rounds · 5:04 · about 3.8 breaths a minute

Take care: Keep the holds easy. If one feels tight, shorten it or set it to Off.

Equal breathing, in its box form: breathe in, pause, breathe out, pause, all to one count. To begin without the pauses, set the holds to Off.

Written by Viram from the sources below. Updated . How we write our guides.

How to practise Sama Vritti

  1. Sit upright, or lie down with your head supported. Let your shoulders drop.
  2. Breathe through your nose for every step.
  3. Inhale for 4, without straining to fill up.
  4. Hold for 4 with your throat soft. Don’t clamp your throat or bear down.
  5. Exhale for 4, smooth and unhurried, then rest for 4 before the next breath. The rest is a pause after a comfortable exhale, not an empty-lung strain.
  6. If the holds feel tight, shorten them or turn them off in Adjust rhythm. You can go back to ordinary breathing at any time.

Each round, step by step

StepSecondsWhat to do
Inhale4In through the nose, slow and even.
Hold after inhale4Pause at the top. Keep your throat soft.
Exhale4Out through the nose, just as slowly.
Rest4Pause after an easy exhale.

Take care

Keep the holds easy. If one feels tight, shorten it or set it to Off.

  • Holds should feel easy. If one feels tight, shorten it or set it to Off.
  • If holding your breath makes you uneasy, turn the holds off and breathe evenly instead.
  • With high blood pressure, a heart or lung condition, or in pregnancy, set the holds to Off or check with your clinician first.
  • Stop and breathe normally if you feel dizzy or short of breath.
  • Never practice breath holds in or near water.
  • Breathe gently. If you feel dizzy or uncomfortable, stop and return to your normal breath.

Traditionally

Sama vritti means “even movement.” The Yoga Sutras describe regulating the breath by time and count, and B.K.S. Iyengar taught equal counts gradually: first an even inhale and exhale, then a pause after the inhale, and only later a pause after the exhale. The same four-count pattern spread through military and police training as “box breathing.”

What the research says

In small, short studies, mostly with healthy students, box breathing eased anxiety within a session, and one trial found it softened the body’s stress response compared with normal breathing. In the largest head-to-head trial, it did no better than mindfulness meditation and didn’t change heart rate variability. We found no long-term studies. It is not a treatment.

Sources

  1. B.K.S. Iyengar (1981). Light on Pranayama. George Allen & Unwin.
  2. Patanjali (c. 4th century). Yoga Sutras, with the commentary of Vyasa. Translated by James Haughton Woods, 1914.
  3. Mark Divine (2016). The breathing technique a Navy SEAL uses to stay calm and focused. TIME.
  4. Balban MY et al. (2023). Brief structured respiration practices enhance mood and reduce physiological arousal. Cell Reports Medicine 4(1):100895.
  5. McAllister MJ et al. (2026). Box breathing and prolonged exhalation reduces markers of physiological stress reactivity in response to a virtual Trier Social Stress Test. Comprehensive Psychoneuroendocrinology 27:100360.

A wellness practice, not medical advice. Read practising safely before you begin.

Beginner path · 1 of 5

Comfortable with Sama Vritti? Next on the path is Visama Vritti (extended exhale). It follows the order of Viram’s Pranayama Foundations program.

More classical pranayama