When someone tells you to ‘just breathe’ in order to calm down, you may want to listen. Not just because of the obvious reason ‘you’ll pass out otherwise’, breathing exercises can decrease stress, improve mental alertness, and raise energy levels.

When you need to just sit back and ‘take a breather’ try this exercise:

Shallow Breath Exercise: When sitting into a chair, hold your arms out in front of you at shoulder height. Inhale 3 short breaths through your nose, lifting your arms out to the sides and over your head on the second and third breath. Drop your arms to the side and exhale through your mouth in one large breath. Repeat 10 to 12 times.

What do you do to de-stress?