One-Minute Reset: The Power of a Longer Exhale

Quick relief in the middle of your workday—no apps, books, or courses required.

When stress hits during the workday, most of us try to push through. But high stress interferes with decision-making, communication, and focus—often when we need those skills the most.

Here’s one fast, evidence-based way to reset:

Inhale normally. Then make your exhale just a little longer.

That’s it.

It’s a tactic used by elite athletes, military teams, and healthcare professionals to stay grounded and effective under pressure. And it works in under a minute.

Why this works

When you're stressed, your breathing becomes short and shallow. This signals your sympathetic nervous system—the part responsible for fight, flight, or freeze—that you're in danger.

But when you exhale slowly, you activate the parasympathetic nervous system—your body's built-in brake system for stress. A longer out-breath is a physiological cue of safety and calm.

A 2018 review in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience found that slow, paced breathing helps regulate the autonomic nervous system, reduce anxiety, and improve emotional control (Zaccaro et al., 2018).

Try it now

1. Sit or stand with your feet grounded.

2. Breathe in naturally—no counting, no deep breath needed.

3. Exhale slowly, aiming for about twice as long as your inhale.

4. Repeat 3–5 times.

5. Notice the shift.

No app. No timer. No performance goal. Just a moment of reset.

Try it now—and follow this series for more high-impact, zero-fluff tools to reset your stress response in real time.