Listening transcript · Episode 93

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B1–B2ListeningAbout 17 min + dynamic ads5 PDF versions available

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Welcome to Your English Toolbox.

This is Calm English...

STILL.

I am Peter.

Last time, we traveled through your body... and gave each part its English name.

If you were there, welcome back.

If this is your first time... you are in exactly the right place.

Before we begin — the same small request as always.

Please do not listen to this episode while driving.

Find a quiet moment.

A closed door.

Headphones, if you have them.

Now... a question.

How many words do you know for "breathe"?

Most people say: one.

Breathe.

That is the only word they have.

Today you are going to have twelve.

And each one is going to change how your body feels.

You can sit for this one.

Or lie down — both work.

If you sit... let your back be tall, but soft.

Rest your hands anywhere they want to be.

And close your eyes.

One thing before we start.

If at any moment you feel dizzy... simply breathe normally.

That is not a mistake.

That is your body talking to you.

Listen to it.

Always.

Here is your first word.

Breathe in through your nose... slowly.

That movement has a name.

INHALE.

Inhale.

Now breathe out... even more slowly.

That is the second word.

EXHALE.

Inhale... exhale.

In... and out.

Now, inhale again.

But this time, feel your chest and your belly grow.

They EXPAND.

Expand — to become bigger, to open, to take up space.

You are allowed to take up space.

And when you breathe out... you RELEASE.

Release — to let go of what you were holding.

The air.

The tension.

The day.

Release it all with the exhale.

Now, something subtle.

Breathe in... and before you breathe out... notice it.

That tiny moment of stillness between the two.

That is a PAUSE.

The pause.

It was always there.

You just never visited it before.

A pause can be short... or you can make it longer.

Breathe in... and HOLD.

Keep the air inside... gently.

No force.

And now release.

Hold — to keep something with you, on purpose.

Two more words about how you breathe.

The first is DEPTH.

To breathe with depth means to breathe deep and low.

Not shallow.

Not fast. Not up in the shoulders.

Down... where the breath has room.

The second is CAPACITY.

Your capacity is the full amount your lungs can hold.

Most of the day, you use a small part of it.

Right now... you are using all of it.

Your full capacity.

Now listen to your breathing for a moment.

In... and out... in... and out.

It has a pattern.

A music.

That is your RHYTHM.

Your rhythm.

Not mine.

Not anyone else's.

Your own pace.

The next word is beautiful... and difficult.

SURRENDER.

Surrender means: stop controlling.

Let it happen.

Try it with one exhale.

Breathe in...

and now surrender to the exhale.

Don't push the air out.

Just... let it leave.

Two final words.

Soft ones.

DRIFT.

To drift is to move slowly... without direction... like a small boat on calm water.

Let your attention drift with the breath.

And SETTLE.

To settle is to slowly come to rest... like dust in a quiet room.

Feel your body settle... a little more with every cycle.

That is all twelve.

And you did not study a single one.

You breathed them.

Now I want to give you something to take with you.

A technique.

It is called four... seven... eight.

It is very old, and very simple.

You inhale through your nose... for four seconds.

You hold... for seven.

And you exhale through your mouth... slowly... for eight.

Inhale — expand — hold — surrender — exhale — release.

That is the whole technique.

People use it to calm the body before sleep... before an exam... before a difficult conversation in English.

We will do four cycles together.

If seven seconds feels too long, hold for less.

Your rhythm.

Your capacity.

Let's begin.

First, exhale everything you have.

Now — inhale through the nose.

Hold... gently.

And exhale through the mouth... slowly... all the way.

That was one cycle.

Three more.

Inhale.

Hold.

Exhale... surrender.

You are doing beautifully.

Again — inhale... expand.

Hold... keep it gently.

Exhale... release the day.

Last one.

Inhale... with depth.

Hold.

And exhale... let everything settle.

Now... breathe normally.

And just notice.

How does your body feel... compared to ten minutes ago?

You don't need to answer.

You already know.

The twelve words.

Listen one last time... and feel each one.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Expand.

Release.

Pause.

Hold.

Depth.

Capacity.

Rhythm.

Surrender.

Drift.

Settle.

You arrived with one word for breathing.

You leave with twelve.

And a technique that will be with you... for the rest of your life.

Come back to this episode whenever you need it.

It will work every time.

This was Calm English...

STILL.

I am Peter.

And now you know... breathing was never just one word.

It was a whole language.

And it lives inside you.

Thank you for breathing with me today.

Goodbye, friends.

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