Vaping & Inhaling — How to Inhale When You’re Using an E-Cigarette

Let’s talk for a bit about vaping and inhaling.

I know, I know… you’re probably scratching your head now, thinking… what the hell? Inhaling a vape is simple. Right?

Well, yes and no.

If you’re a beginner vaper (and you’ve just gotten your e-juice vape pen, you’ve probably realized that inhaling on a vape is different than inhaling on a cigarette. And if you’re not doing it right, you might be tempted to kick the whole vaping thing to the curb.

Don’t do that.

In this post, I’ll answer the question of how to inhale when you’re vaping in great detail. You’ll learn more about different inhaling styles, how to tweak the style to fit your needs, and how to get the right fit from your vape.

Just stick with me and you’ll soon be a master of vaping inhales.

Let’s get to it.

What’s the Difference Between Inhaling On a Cigarette & a Vape?
If you’re just starting with vaping, you might feel a lil’ bit underwhelmed by the experience.

That’s usually down to how you inhale… you’re not getting the same sensation that you do when smoking so you’re probably asking yourself… what’s the point?

The thing is…

There’s just one way to smoke a cigarette, and get it to work for you…

But there are several ways to vape, and you’ll want to try them to see what’s the right fit.

Straight off the bat, I want to dive into that age-old vaping question (well, at least 10 years old) — to inhale deep into the lungs or not to inhale? (cough cough). I’ll also cover a few more vaping & inhaling questions here, so let’s dive right into it.

Do I Inhale Vapor Into My Lungs?

Well, yes. 

In general, you should inhale your vapor as you would a regular cigarette.

Vaping is designed to serve as a substitute for smoking. And it is a way better alternative. To give your body nicotine hit you should inhale vapor in your lungs. Of course, you might see some seasoned vapers (those who are looking to quit) opt not to inhale vapor in their lungs. Like I said at the beginning, vaping has several styles and you will learn them.

Although there are still some concerns regarding lung damage, most studies (such as this one) show the benefits of vaping as a means to quit smoking. And they also show that no lung damage can be detected even if someone has been vaping for a long time.

NOTE: Chain vaping (inhaling multiple times without releasing vapor out, and doing that all day long) can cause discomfort in the lungs. We don’t know if it causes long-lasting lung damage, but still… if you can avoid chain vaping, it’s best that you do.

How Forcefully Should I Inhale On an E-Cigarette?

It all comes down to your own preferences. 

If you are a newly converted smoker, your puff will probably be short like inhaling smoke from a cigarette. In due time, as you get more and more experienced with vaping you will notice the changes. 

You will start to inhale more. You will hold the power button more. You’ll enjoy your vape more.

However… be careful. 

If you’re using a high nicotine vape juice, strong and frequent inhales can make you dizzy. On the other hand, if you are not too familiar with your set-up, there’s a chance you’ll get spitback or completely fry your wick, causing a burnt taste in your vape. In conclusion, strong inhales are okay, but it all depends on your vaporizer. 

Should I Hold In Vape In My Lungs Longer?

Again, it depends on what you prefer. 

With vaping, you can inhale and exhale however you like. Holding vape for a longer period will only result in more absorption. Your body will fill up with more nicotine from your vape juice and your plasma nicotine level will stay higher for a longer period. 

The golden rule for holding vape is somewhere between 5 to 10 seconds. You’ll get the most out of your liquid, and you will be able to engage or continue a conversation you had with someone.

On the other hand, there are some methods you could find interesting, but they are more “lone-wolf” style. What I mean is, don’t try to be too social when having 5-6 steps of “special” inhale ritual. People won’t get you…

For example:

The “Iron lungs” method

·Inhale vapor to approx. 50% of your max lung capacity;

·After that inhale fresh air to fill up your lungs completely;

·Hold it for 5 sec;

·Exhale a bit (not all the way out);

·Take a few shallows inhales and wait another 5 sec;

·After that, fully exhale.

See… 

It is a process but, if you can pull this one off, you will feel it to the core. That hit will be amazing.

Does Inhaling Affect Flavor?
Inhaling doesn’t have much effect on the flavor of your vape.

And, there are liquids that give you one flavor when you inhale it, and completely other when you exhale it. It all depends on the brand you plan to use. My kind advice would be to try everything until you find a flavor that you really love.

But, what does affect flavors are coils and hydration.

If you want to fully experience every flavor you have at your disposal then you should change your coils regularly. But, even more important, drink enough water to keep your taste buds clean and sensitive.

What Are Priming Puffs (& Should You Care)?
Priming is a throwback to the beginning of vaping, when coils had to be moistened before being used.

When you put new coils in your atomizer you should do two or three priming puffs to saturate the cotton. All you need to do is “simulate” vaping but without turning on your vaporizer/mod. 

Is it mandatory? Not really, but it won’t hurt to do that every now and then with brand new coils.

How Do I Inhale On a Vape Without Coughing?
If you are continuously coughing while vaping there are a ton of things that might be bothering you. 

To resolve them, you should start with your e-liquid. What PG/VG blend you keep using, and how much nicotine you put in it? Which coils are in your vaporizer, are they primed properly? Are you getting dry hits too often?

All these issues are easy to fix making your vaping experience so much better.

Vape Juice 
·Check your nicotine percentage; lower it at first then gradually adjust to the preferred dosage.
·Adjust the base of your vape juice — start by lowering PG and amping up VG a bit, it will definitely help.
·The most common base liquid combinations on the market are 70% PG / 30% VG, or 50% PG / 50% VG, so you should consider making your own blend (at first).

Vaporizer
·Dry hits — add more cotton to your coils and/or saturate them with more e-liquid.
·Prime your coils — you’ll avoid burning cotton, and you will preserve coils (use them longer).
·Power output —  if you’re using a stronger mod, adjust your voltage properly, maybe your mod heats up coils too fast resulting in stronger and thicker vapor.

Inhaling
·Start with shallower inhales; don’t go all crazy at the beginning, your throat and lungs need to adjust to a new nicotine source.
·Transition; start with the same way you would inhale a cloud of cigarette smoke.

Can My Vape Inhale Style Affect My Health?
Your style of vaping has no correlation to your health. 

Vaping, although safer than smoking, is still misjudged by many. Sometimes it is defined as a new trend to make nicotine addictive to youth. Of course, vaping is unlikely to have adverse health effects and there is a study to prove that. 

Basically, this study shows that after 3 years there were no decreases in spirometric indices, no development of respiratory symptoms, no changes in markers of lung inflammation in exhaled air, and no findings of early lung damage.

Two Main Styles of Vape Inhales
The fun side of vaping is that you can adjust and control every part of your, let’s call it, inhale experience (depending on your atomizer, that is). 

There are two common inhale methods — mouth to lung and direct to lung.
In mouth to lung vaping, you take a small hit, hold it in your mouth, and only then do you inhale it into your lungs. This is a vape inhale method that’s most similar to smoking an analog cigarette.

Another method you can use is direct-to-lungs (meaning, you will inhale vapor directly from your vaporizer straight to your lungs). This method is mostly used by experienced vapers and “cloud chasers” because you can inhale so much more vapor. Puffing like a train some would say.

Mouth to Lung Vaping

Nowadays, almost every mod has an airflow system allowing you to adjust your preferred method of vaping/inhaling. If you keep your airflow completely closed you will have a mouth-to-lung effect (meaning, you will first receive vapor in your mouth, and then you can inhale it in your lungs). That effect is more similar to regular smoking because… well, smoking analog cigarettes don’t give you any other option…so…

Pros:
·Since inhalation is delayed, you use less vape juice.
·M2L style requires less power from mods meaning vapor isn’t too hot meaning your e-cigarette won’t run low on battery and get overheated.
·Since this method is similar to regular smoking it’s very helpful in quitting smoking regular cigarettes.

Cons:
·To some, M2L does not satisfy the need for nicotine since hits are a bit weak and less intense.
·Popularity is declining since the market is overrun with sub-ohm vaporizers.

Direct to Lung Vaping

Another method you can use is direct-to-lungs (meaning, you will inhale vapor directly from your vaporizer straight to your lungs). It’s extremely popular and people tend to switch to it quite fast.

This method is mostly used by experienced vapers and “cloud chasers” because you can inhale so much more vapor. Puffing like a train some would say.

Pros:
·Vaping DTL you’ll experience more flavor than ever. Your tastebuds will have a party with every inhale and exhale.
·Personalized mod and vaping. The market is quite saturated with sub-ohm tanks and many different mods for DTL style. Choose the ones you fancy the most.
·Bigger and thicker vapor (if you wanna be a bit of a show-off).

Cons:
·Strong and complex mods usually cost a few bucks more than pen-like e-cigarette.
·You’ll chug through your vape juice faster which will slap your pockets.
·Will get a dry hit now and then, resulting in coughing.

The Cigar Inhale (Vaping)
This style of vaping is the best way to experience the full potential of your flavors. To pull it off you need to know how to insert vapor into your cheeks before inhaling it. So it should be a mouth to lung type of inhaling. After you manage that you need to roll the tongue along the roof of the mouth giving it a very short and very shallow inhale. The dead giveaway of cigar inhales style is a thick cloud of vapor slowly coming out your mouth. White as a marshmallow.

The Snap Inhale (Vaping)
Snap inhale, or also known as Ghosting is a method of pushing vapor out of your mouth and then inhaling it back really fast. The reason why it’s called Ghosting is because of the shape of the vape that comes out of your mouth for that split second (like a ghost). This style of vaping does not need any special functions on your vaporizer.

The French Inhale (Vaping)
The next style you should try is the French inhale: it is similar to the Snap inhale. First, you get a mouthful of vapor. Then you slowly push vapor out while parting your lips to let the vapor drift out. After that, you inhale that same vapor into your nostrils. The best way to perfect this is to practice in front of a mirror. It should look rather like an inverted waterfall.

How to Inhale On Your Vape Correctly — Demystified!

So… now you finally know all that there is about vaping and inhaling.
Just remember… there are two main vape inhaling styles:

·Mouth to lung (M2L) — similar style to regular cigarette; mostly used by newcomers and people that prefer “stronger” e-liquids (higher nicotine mg).
·Direct to lung (D2L) — more enjoyable for flavor fans, with thicker clouds… but, can cause a cough or two in the process (sometimes).

Choose the one that works for you.

If you have any problems with your vaping, make sure to troubleshoot your gear and your vape juice. If that doesn’t help, try to switch your inhaling style…