Meditation or Oxygen Restriction?

There is an interesting article which explores intermittent calorie and oxygen restriction as means for periodic rejuvenation:


Affordable Rejuvenation: A Prototype Facility In Action
Arkadi F. Prokopov and Juergen Reinmuth, Rejuvenation Research. April / June 2010, 13(2-3): 350-352. doi:10.1089/rej.2009.0946.
Abstract
The Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence (SENS) agenda contemplates specialized centers that offer a periodic rejuvenation and biogerontological maintenance for their clients. Although high-tech interventions are still in an early research phase, well-proven natural techniques, such as various forms of caloric/nutritional restriction, physical training, and preconditioning treatments, are not unanimously embraced due to poor adherence of patients. The practicability of such interventions can be significantly improved by “engineering” them for higher efficiency and better user friendliness. We describe practical experience in developing and running a prototype facility that uses rejuvenative treatment protocols, derived from two natural life span–prolonging strategies: Intermittent calorie/nutritive restriction (ICR) and intermittent oxygen restriction (IOR).

We know that calorie restriction has been generally accepted by the science community as a way to extend life and health span, even though it is not proven in humans. But oxygen restriction?

However, in some types of yoga meditation, oxygen restriction (hypoxia) can be achieved through dramatically reducing the rhythm of respiration. Meditation has been shown to have positive health outcome, such as lowering blood pressure, increasing the ability to focus attention, and making people feel happier. Could it be due to oxygen restriction?

Last year, I was practicing a type of breathing exercise (meditation) as follows:

5 seconds to breathe in, hold for 20 seconds and exhale for 10 seconds

I find it extremely difficult to do. I tried again today for 15 minutes and hope to eventually extend to 30 minutes.