The “Invisible Breathing Habit”: Why Your 2026 Glow-Up is Currently Stuck in Your Mouth

It’s that time of the year! Time to work on your Vision Board and New Year’s resolutions! But there is one tiny, glaring problem: most of us are trying to build a “New Me” on a physiological foundation that is, quite literally, gasping for air because of a dysfunctional breathing pattern.

If you want 2026 to be the year you actually stick to your resolutions, it’s time to stop looking at your trainers and start looking at your nose.

The “Deep Breath” Delusion

We’ve been told our whole lives that if we’re stressed, we should “take a big, deep breath”. It sounds like solid advice, right? Wrong. In the world of functional physiology, telling a stressed person to take a massive gulp of air is a bit like telling someone who is drowning to drink more water.

Most of us are “over-breathing”. We breathe through our mouths, we breathe into our upper chests, and we do it way too fast. This keeps our nervous system stuck in a “fight or flight” loop. You can’t have a “Glow Up” year if your body constantly thinks it’s being chased by a T-Rex.

Why Your Resolution is Failing (Before It Even Starts)

Let’s look at the classic 2026 goals and see why your “Invisible Habit” might be the saboteur:

• The “Get Fit” Goal: Have you ever started a New Year’s jog and felt like your lungs were on fire after five minutes? That’s often because you’re mouth-breathing. When you breathe through your mouth, you’re actually getting less oxygen to your muscles. It’s called the Bohr Effect, a fancy scientific way of saying that without enough CO2 in your blood, the oxygen stays “stuck” to your red blood cells, just when you need more oxygen for the muscles in your legs. You’re basically running on an empty tank while the fuel is sitting right there, locked in the boot.
• The “Sleep Better” Goal: If your partner has ever compared your snoring to a rusty chainsaw, or if you wake up with a mouth as dry as the Simpson Desert, you aren’t sleeping; you’re struggling. Mouth breathing during sleep is a major driver of snoring and apneas. ou can stuff your pillow with lavender, but the most effective breathing exercises for anxiety and sleep start with retraining your nose.
• The “Less Anxiety” Goal: Anxiety isn’t just in your head; it’s also in your chest. By over-breathing, you are chemically telling your brain to stay alert and panicked. Retraining your breath is one of the most powerful breathing exercises for anxiety and sleep because it chemically tells your brain to calm down.

This Is Where BreatheWell Steps In

As a Naturopath, I’ve seen every health trend, every “superfood” fad, and every “miracle” supplement come and go. But 15 years ago, I found the “missing link”: the Buteyko Method.

I realized that I could give you the best herbs and the perfect diet, but if you are breathing poorly 25,000 times a day, you would never truly thrive. I’m not just a breathing instructor who happens to be a Naturopath; I’m a Naturopath who saw a major functional blind spot—breathing—and adopted Buteyko as the tool to fix it.

Your First 2026 Habit: The Control Pause

Before you go out and buy a 12-month gym membership, I want you to try one simple, free measurement: The Control Pause (CP).

1. Sit quietly for a few minutes.
2. Take a small breath in through your nose, and a small breath out.
3. Pinch your nose and time how many seconds it takes until you feel the first definite urge to breathe or the first involuntary movement of your diaphragm.

If your number is under 20 seconds, your breathing pattern is likely holding your health hostage. If it’s 40 seconds? Congratulations, you’re a physiological unicorn!