Buteyko Practitioner Training Review - By Dr. Artour Rakhimov

Artour Rakhimov, PhD, Buteyko breathing practitioner trainer Buteyko practitioner training is now organized by numerous centers around the world. Since the Buteyko method was brought to the Western world mainly by Alexander Stalmatsky, who taught thousands of patients and numerous practitioners, his pupils and some other practitioners also offer their courses in Buteyko practitioner training.

From a typical Buteyko course, you can expect to get about 25 seconds for the body oxygen test, with some possible unnecessary additions and adaptations of the original Buteyko method taught by Soviet and Russian MDs for the Western world. These additions and adaptations of the Buteyko method are also reflected in Western Buteyko practitioner training.

In order to understand the levels and content of many Buteyko practitioner training courses, one needs to know first what is to expect from a typical Buteyko course and what the differences between typical Russian medical and prevalent Western teaching are.

Buteyko practitioner training: Russian medical vs. Western

The main advantages and important features of Russian medical teaching of the Buteyko method and Russian Buteyko practitioner training relate to the following topics:
- much better knowledge related to lifestyle and other factors in order to get the Buteyko golden standard of health or 60 seconds for the body oxygen test
- more professional use of cold showers, hard beds, barefoot walking and barefoot running for breathing retraining
- better knowledge and application of the Buteyko method to people with hypertension, panic attacks and migraine headaches (some Western practitioners apply maximum pauses for these groups of people when they still have low CPs)
- some other topics mentioned below.

In order to evaluate the efficiency and professionalism of Buteyko practitioner training and practical skills of the Buteyko trainers who organize Buteyko practitioner training, you can ask them the following questions:
- Do you know the methods and techniques that are required to break through 40 seconds morning CP threshold?
- Do you know how to deal with loss of CO2 sensitivity?
- What are independent signs that appear after breaking through the 40 s CP threshold?
- Is taking cold shower an important part of the Buteyko method?
- How much physical exercise per day is required to achieve over 60 s CP?
- and some others.

Generally, most Western additions and adaptations, in Buteyko courses and Buteyko practitioner training, relate to the poor health of trainers (according to Buteyko standards - 60 s CP, they have low CPs) indicating simplification and popularization of teaching the Buteyko method. However, even this application still makes a huge difference on the health of students, who after 3-6 months make about the same improvements as for the Buteyko clinical trials. However, later, most students stop practicing breathing exercises and their health gets slightly worse or about at the same level as the majority of population.

While many Buteyko practitioners encourage their students to go further, there are many Western Buteyko practitioners and trainers who do not tell to their students that, at over 50-60 s CP, there is another life up there (see the Table below). This prevents their students from being motivated to become really healthy. Possibly, this omission also relates to the low CPs of many trainers and practitioners, as well as to a desire to look more confident in the eyes of their students. All these factors indicate that there are serious improvements that can be made in Buteyko practitioner training.

Lifestyle factor:	Body oxygen < 30 s	Body oxygen > 50 s
Energy level	Medium, low, or very low	High
Desire to exercise	Not strong, but possible	Craving and joy of exercise
Intensive exercise with nose breathing	Hard or impossible	Easy and effortless
Typical mind states	Confusion, anxiety, depression	Focus, concentration, clarity
Craving for coffee, sugar and junk foods	Present	Absent
Addictions to smoking, alcohol, and drugs	Possible	Absent
Desire to eat raw foods	Weak and rare	Very common and natural
Correct posture	Rare and requires efforts	Natural and automatic
Sleep	Often of poor quality; > 7 hours	Excellent quality; < 5 hours naturally

Contact details:
Postal address: Dr. Artour Rakhimov, 6250 Bathurst St. #525, Toronto M2R 2A4 Ontario Canada
Email: artour (at) normalbreathing.com
Skype ID: artour_rakhimov

Or you can leave your contact details in the comment box below and explain your situation and reasons of your interest in breathing retraining and the Buteyko method

Reference Web Pages: Breathing norms, Medical Graphs and Tables about Breathing Rates (Minute Ventilation) and Body Oxygen in Healthy, Normal and Sick People
Breathing norms Parameters, graph, and description of the normal breathing pattern
6 breathing myths 6 myths about breathing and body oxygenation (prevalence: over 90%)
Hyperventilation Definitions of hyperventilation: their advantages and weak points
Hyperventilation Syndrome in the Sick. Table 1. Western scientific evidence about prevalence of CHV (chronic hyperventilation) in patients with various chronic conditions (34 medical studies)
Normal Minute Ventilation in Healthy Subjects: Easy and Light Breathing (14 Studies)
Hyperventilation Prevalence Present in Over 90% of Normal People (24 medical publications)
HV and hypoxia How and why deep breathing reduces oxygenation of cells and tissues of all vital organs
Body oxygen test How to measure your own breathing and body oxygenation (a simple DIY test)
Body oxygen in healthy Table 4. CP (body oxygen level) in healthy people (27 medical studies)
Body oxygen in sick Table 5. CP (body oxygen level) in sick people (14 medical studies)
Buteyko Table of Health Zones with clinical description of most common zones
Morning HV Morning hyperventilation effect or how and why critically ill people are most likely to die during early morning hours

References: CO2 Effects Web Pages
Vasodilation: CO2 expands arteries and arterioles facilitating perfusion (or blood supply) to all vital organs
The Bohr effect How and why oxygen is released by red blood cells in tissues
Cell Oxygen Levels and oxygen transport are controlled by alveolar CO2 and breathing
Oxygen Transport depends on breathing and these two effects (Vasoconstriction-Vasodilation and the Bohr effect) are parts of two diagrams that summarize influences of hypocapnia (low CO2 content in the blood and cells) on circulation and O2 delivery
Free Radical Generation takes place due to anaerobic cell respiration caused by cell hypoxia. Hence, antioxidant defenses of the human body are also regulated by CO2 and breathing
Inflammatory Response is controlled by breathing since hypoxia leads to or intensifies chronic inflammation through over-expression of the hypoxia-inducible factor 1, while normal breathing reduces these processes
Nerve stabilization takes place due to calmative or sedative effects of carbon dioxide in neurons or nerve cells
Muscle relaxation or relaxation of muscle cells is normal at high CO2, while hypocapnia causes muscular tension, poor posture and, sometimes, aggression and violence
Brochodilation - dilation of airways (bronchi and bronchioles) by carbon dioxide, and their constriction due to hypocapnia
CO2: Best Natural Cough Suppressant and "home remedy" since it calms urge-to-cough nerve receptors located in the tracheobronchial tree and larynx
Blood pH regulation and regulation of other bodily fluids
CO2: Lung Damage Healer: Elevated carbon dioxide prevents injury and promotes healing of lung tissues
CO2: Skin and Tissue Healer
Synthesis of Glutamine in the Brain, CO2 fixation, and other chemical reactions
CO2 myth "CO2 is a toxic waste gas" myth
Breathing control How is our breathing regulated? Why hypocapnia makes breathing uneven and erratic?

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