Viloma pranayama: the interrupted breath, in three stages

How to do Viloma

1. Lie on your back with a folded blanket under your head, knees bent or legs straight, arms relaxed by your sides. (You can also sit tall once the practice feels easy.)
2. Take a few normal breaths, then breathe out fully and gently.
3. Viloma 1 (interrupted inhale): when the ring starts to grow, breathe in for about 2 seconds, pause briefly, breathe in for 2 more, pause, then fill the last third — three small steps within the 6-second inhale.
4. As the ring shrinks, breathe out in one slow, smooth, continuous stream through the nose for 6 seconds.
5. Repeat for the 9 rounds on the timer (just under 2 minutes). Keep every pause soft — the throat stays open and the face relaxed.
6. When stage 1 feels easy over several days, try Viloma 2: a smooth 6-second inhale and an exhale in three small steps with brief pauses.
7. Finish with a minute of natural breathing and a short rest in Corpse Pose before you sit up.

Viloma pranayama is a breathing practice in which you breathe in, or breathe out, in small steps with short pauses in between. Because the breath is deliberately paused, it is often called interrupted breathing. It is a gentle, precise practice from the Iyengar tradition, and it teaches breath control better than almost any other technique. This page explains the meaning, the three stages, how to use the timer above, honest benefits, precautions and how Viloma differs from Anulom Vilom.

What is Viloma pranayama? Meaning in English

In Sanskrit, vi means "against" and loma means "hair", so viloma means "against the grain" or "against the natural flow". In English, the Viloma pranayama meaning is "interrupted breath": instead of one smooth inhale, you take the breath in stages, like climbing a staircase and resting on each step.

The practice is described in detail by B.K.S. Iyengar in Light on Pranayama. In his method it is taught lying down first, which makes it safe and easy to learn, and only later in a seated pose.

Viloma pranayama stages: Viloma 1, 2 and 3

These three are the classic Viloma variations. Beginners start with stage 1 for a week or two, then add stage 2. Stage 3 needs good control and is best learned with a teacher.

How to use the Viloma timer on this page

The timer above is set to 6 seconds in and 6 seconds out for 9 rounds, with no breath hold. It gives you the frame; you add the pauses.

• Ring grows (6 seconds): for Viloma 1, split the inhale into three parts of about 2 seconds, each a short sip plus a soft pause. For Viloma 2, breathe in smoothly.
• Ring shrinks (6 seconds): for Viloma 1, breathe out smoothly. For Viloma 2, breathe out in three parts with pauses.
• A soft chime marks each change. Change the rounds before you start, or turn off the voice if you prefer to count silently. Your minutes are saved in My Practice.

As you improve, you can split each half into four or five smaller steps within the same 6 seconds. You do not need a longer breath hold to make progress; precision is the goal.

Duration: how many minutes to do pranayama like Viloma

Start with 2 minutes (the default 9 rounds) and build to 5–10 minutes over a few weeks. Practise on an empty stomach, ideally in the morning or early evening, and finish with a few minutes of rest in Corpse Pose. If you practise yoga poses too, do Viloma after the poses, not before.

Viloma pranayama benefits

Be realistic: there is little research on Viloma itself. What it does clearly is train attention and breath control, and its slow pace of five breaths a minute is the kind of breathing that research links to a calmer heart rate and nervous system.

• Stress and anxiety. Stage 2, with its paused exhale, is the calming version. Many people use it as a short practice for stress and mild anxiety.
• Breath awareness. You learn to feel the lower, middle and upper ribs fill in turn, which helps with posture and deeper breathing.
• Sleep. A few rounds of stage 2 lying in bed can help you wind down; see our yoga for sleep plan.
• Preparation. Viloma prepares you for longer practices such as Nadi Shodhana.

Viloma vs Anuloma Viloma and Anulom Vilom

The names confuse many people. Viloma on its own is the interrupted breath on this page, done through both nostrils. Anulom Vilom ("with the grain and against the grain") is the popular name in India for alternate nostril breathing, in which you breathe in through one nostril and out through the other.

So when people search for Anuloma Viloma pranayama steps or health benefits, they usually mean alternate nostril breathing: calm, balance and a steadier mind. Anulom Vilom pranayama steps and benefits are covered on its own page. Some people write "vilom pranayama" for either practice, and both are gentle techniques for beginners, used for stress and anxiety. What about Nadi Shodhana pranayama vs Anuloma Viloma? They are very similar; Nadi Shodhana usually adds a gentle breath hold.

In Iyengar's system there are also Surya and Chandra Anuloma Viloma pranayama, with traditional benefits of warming (surya, "sun", the right nostril) and cooling (chandra, "moon", the left). In these, you breathe in and out through one nostril only, controlling it with the fingers. They are advanced; learn them with a teacher after basic Surya Bhedana and Chandra Bhedana.

Breath control, rapid breathing and breathing problems

Viloma is a good way to learn how to control your breathing and how to breathe correctly: slowly, through the nose, using the whole chest. If you tend to breathe heavily or fast when stressed, a longer, paused exhale (stage 2) is a simple way to stop rapid breathing and bring the pace down.

Some people get stuck noticing every breath, sometimes called manual breathing; to stop it, end the practice, shift your attention to sounds or your feet, and the breath will run on its own again. Viloma is not the same as interrupted breathing during sleep (sleep apnoea) or other disrupted breathing. If you want to stop being out of breath all the time, or have breathing problems, see a doctor; breathing exercises can help alongside treatment but cannot fix the cause.

Where Viloma fits among the types of pranayama

Pranayama and its types range from simple slow breathing to fast, forceful techniques, each with different benefits. If you want to know how to do simple pranayama before Viloma, start with Sama Vritti pranayama, which is equal breathing, also known as box breathing, or Bhramari, whose benefits include a quieter mind at bedtime. The full list of pranayama types and benefits is on the pranayama page.

Common mistakes

• Locking the throat in the pauses. A pause is a light rest, not a squeeze.
• Gasping at the end. If you need a big breath after the steps, the steps were too big.
• Lifting the shoulders. Let the ribs and belly do the work.

Where this practice is used

Yoga for: COPD

More breathing techniques

Breathing practices are safe for most people when done gently. Stop if you feel dizzy, anxious or short of breath, and ask your doctor first if you have heart or lung disease, high blood pressure, epilepsy or are pregnant.