TAKE A DEEP BREATH

Today’s guest is TJ Power, neuroscientist and author of The DOSE Effect. In this podcast, we explore how dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin and endorphins shape the way we feel, why modern life leaves so many of us overstimulated, and what we can do about it through better habits, breathwork, nature, food and connection.

Find out more about TJ here: https://tjpower.co.uk/

Enjoying the podcast? Buy me a coffee and help keep it going ☕ https://buymeacoffee.com/mikemaher

Free Resources:

🎁 FREE 7-Day Nervous System Reset Course (worth $99, free for a limited time)
👉 https://www.takeadeepbreath.co.uk/7-day-reset-signup
🎁 Try my main Community for FREE for 7 days here:
👉 https://www.skool.com/breathe/about

Work With Me:

🌿 Heal Your Nervous System At Your Own Pace - a self-paced course to fix chronic stress
👉 https://www.skool.com/breathe/about

🧘 1:1 Coaching - personalised support to fit your life
👉 https://www.takeadeepbreath.co.uk/121-coaching-2026

Listen to this podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0zcueBIU1nFKQCeUepR3dw

Questions? Email me: take-a-deep-breath@outlook.com

Chapters
0:00 Why You Feel So Overstimulated
1:31 The 4 Brain Chemicals Running Your Life
3:34 Breathwork, Serotonin & Your Vagus Nerve
6:50 Why Modern Life Feels So Rushed
12:13 How to Break Your Phone Addiction
19:28 Dopamine Withdrawal & the 15-Minute Boredom Barrier
25:20 What Screens Are Doing to Our Kids
30:53 The Missing Ritual Between Work & Home
34:40 Why Your Brain Won’t Switch Off at Night
40:01 Sunlight, Serotonin & Better Sleep
43:31 Sauna vs Cold: Which Does Your Brain Need?
50:37 How Ultra-Processed Food Hijacks Dopamine
58:33 Why We’re Starving Ourselves of Oxytocin
1:00:44 The Surprising Power of Eye Contact
1:07:29 AI, Relationships & the Future of Our Brains

Watch on YouTube Here
Today’s guest is Dr. Belisa Vranich, psychologist, author and TEDx speaker, whose work focuses on breathing mechanics and helping people retrain dysfunctional breathing patterns.

Take Dr Belisa's Breathing IQ Test Here:
👉 https://breathingclass.com/biq

Free Resources:

🎁 Start Here: FREE 7-Day Nervous System Reset Course (worth $99, free for a limited time)
👉 https://www.takeadeepbreath.co.uk/7-day-reset-signup

🎁 Download My Periodic Table of Breathwork (Every Breathing Exercise Mapped)
👉 https://www.takeadeepbreath.co.uk/periodic-table-signup

Work With Me:

🌿 Heal Your Nervous System At Your Own Pace - a self-paced course to fix chronic stress
👉 https://www.skool.com/breathe/about

🧘 1:1 Coaching - personalised support to fit your life
👉 https://www.takeadeepbreath.co.uk/121-coaching-2026

Questions? Email me: take-a-deep-breath@outlook.com

Chapters:
0:00 Why 9 in 10 People May Be Breathing Wrong
1:08 Functional vs Dysfunctional Breathing
8:18 How Your Breathing Affects Stress & Anxiety
16:46 A 2-Minute Breathing Reset You Can Do Anywhere
24:04 Why Your Hips & Spine Matter for Breathing
32:24 The Breathing IQ Test: Are You Breathing Properly?
41:52 How to Test Your Breathing Mechanics
49:14 Belly Breathing, Bracing & “Sucking In” Your Gut
58:50 Can You Fix Your Breathing as You Get Older?
1:09:25 How Quickly Can You Retrain Your Breathing?
1:20:05 What to Do Once Your Breathing Is “Fixed”
1:24:11 Sauna, Breathing Devices & Respiratory Training
1:29:06 Is Box Breathing Actually That Powerful?

Today’s guest is Davy Pulkerman, founder of Zippit.

After developing Long COVID symptoms, Davy became obsessed with improving his breathing, sleep and energy, eventually creating his own mouth tape and nasal strips. Today, Zippit has more than 100,000 customers.

Amazingly, after more than five years of this podcast, this is the first time I’ve sat down with someone who actually makes mouth tape and nasal strips! We get into nasal vs mouth breathing, sleep and snoring, who should and shouldn’t use mouth tape, nasal strips for exercise, and some of the simple things you can do to make breathing through your nose easier.

Want to try Zippit?
👉 go-zippit.com
Use code TAKEADEEPBREATH15 for 15% off.

I’ve personally used Davy’s products and really like them, so if you’ve been curious about mouth tape or nasal strips, have a look.

Take part in the mouth-taping study mentioned in the episode:
👉 https://tally.so/r/MeEYdX

Free Resources:

🎁 Start Here: FREE 7-Day Nervous System Reset Course (worth $99, free for a limited time)
👉 https://www.takeadeepbreath.co.uk/7-day-reset-signup

Work With Me:

🌿 Heal Your Nervous System At Your Own Pace - a self-paced course to fix chronic stress and anxiety, on your own time
👉 https://www.skool.com/breathe/about

🧘 1:1 Breathing & Nervous System Reset Coaching - personalised support to fit your life
👉 https://www.takeadeepbreath.co.uk/121-coaching-2026

Chapters:
00:00 Mouth Tape, Nasal Strips & Better Breathing
02:01 Why Nasal Breathing Matters
07:38 Who Should and Shouldn’t Use Mouth Tape?
11:41 Mouth Tape for Snoring, Sleep & Dry Mouth
16:23 Scared of Mouth Taping? Start Here
19:41 The Biggest Mouth Taping Study Yet
20:34 Nasal Strips: Do They Really Increase Airflow?
25:40 Nose vs Mouth Breathing: What’s Actually Best?
27:04 Mouth Tape vs Nasal Strips for Better Sleep
33:31 Why Breathwork Is Exploding

Curious about your own biological age? You can take the same GlycanAge test I did in this episode and save with our exclusive 10% discount using the link below. https://glycanage.com/shop?discount=TADB

In this episode, I sit down with Nicolina Lauc, co-founder of GlycanAge, to explore what your biological age can reveal about your health, stress levels and future longevity.

We discuss why some people age faster than others, how chronic stress changes the body, my own GlycanAge results, and the simple habits that may help you live a longer, healthier life.

If you're interested in longevity, stress, breathwork or optimising your health, you'll enjoy this conversation.

00:00 Why Your Real Age Isn't Your Birthday
00:55 Meet GlycanAge & Biological Age Testing
05:17 What Is Inflammation, Really?
07:00 Are Telomeres Actually the Best Age Test?
11:12 What Speeds Up Biological Age?
13:19 ADHD, Stress & Living Longer
18:19 Mike's GlycanAge Test Results
23:48 What Your Glycan Results Really Mean
28:37 Sleep, Stress & VO₂ Max
32:28 The Biggest Things That Slow Ageing
36:54 Health Anxiety & Biohacking
40:39 Childhood Trauma & Biological Age
44:33 Breathwork, PTSD & Healing
47:42 Can Breathing Slow Ageing?
52:41 Nature, EMFs & Modern Living
54:48 Blue Zones & Why Some People Live Longer
1:01:40 Is Lung Capacity the Best Predictor of Longevity?
1:02:42 The Best Anti-Inflammatory Diet
1:07:36 PTSD, Hypervigilance & Sleep
1:11:44 How to Get Your Biological Age Tested
1:13:39 Final Thoughts

In today's episode, we welcome back Ariel Garten, co-founder of Muse. Ariel is a neuroscientist and former psychotherapist whose brain-sensing technology is used by NASA, the Mayo Clinic, and hundreds of thousands of everyday meditators worldwide.

In this conversation, we discuss why meditation feels so hard to stick with, what's actually happening in your brain during those first few weeks of practice, and how to teach even young kids to self-regulate with their breath. We also get into why silence can feel so uncomfortable, whether you can trust your own thoughts, and Ariel's take on using meditation to sit with physical pain rather than fight it.

Want to try Muse? It's a headband that reads your brain activity in real time while you meditate, so instead of guessing whether you're doing it right, you get instant feedback that guides you back to focus. Get 15% off Muse at https://choosemuse.com/tadb

0:00 – The Problem With Meditation
3:07 – What Meditation Does To Your Brain
5:23 – Muse vs Meditating Alone
8:09 – Teaching Kids To Meditate
13:10 – The Fear Of Silence
16:15 – Does Location Matter?
17:47 – Can You Trust Your Thoughts?
20:42 – Talking Back To Your Inner Critic
23:05 – Sitting Still vs Walking Meditation
26:20 – Meditation In A Crisis
28:21 – Is Pain Good Or Bad?
36:28 – How Muse Improves Your Sleep

Want to try Muse? It's a headband that reads your brain activity in real time while you meditate, so instead of guessing whether you're doing it right, you get instant feedback that guides you back to focus. Get 15% off Muse at https://choosemuse.com/tadb