Carbon Dioxide Tolerance

Carbon dioxide tolerance is a measure of your ability to manage levels of carbon dioxide in your body, which can reveal how well you are managing stress and recovery, both physically and mentally. Andrew Huberman explains the importance and methodology of the Carbon Dioxide Tolerance Test. This test serves as an objective measure to assess the activity of the diaphragm and the parasympathetic arm of the nervous system—essentially reflecting how calm your system is. The process involves taking a series of deep breaths and timing how long you can exhale the air. The longer you can extend the exhale, the better your CO2 tolerance.

The test generally requires:

1. Taking four deep breaths, inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth.
2. On the fifth breath, inhale as deeply as possible, then begin timing how long you can extend the exhale.
3. Your ability to slowly exhale air for a longer duration indicates better control over your diaphragm and a higher tolerance to CO2.

This capacity is crucial as it helps in determining the readiness of your nervous system for physical activity and can be an indicator of how well you are recovered from stress or previous physical exertion 1 2.

Additionally, improving CO2 tolerance can impact other areas such as anxiety management, physical performance, and even sleep quality, through practices like box breathing 3.

For thorough information on understanding and improving your carbon dioxide tolerance, and for step-by-step guidelines on how to perform and apply the CO2 Tolerance Test in daily life, please refer to the explanation by Andrew Huberman in the Huberman Lab 1.