Learning How to Breath While Running

Engaging in physical activity requires a lot of breath that will help to sustain your workout longer. Breathing is essential to life but also essential to running. Breathing correctly helps to support your runs whether they are long marathon runs, cross country runs, or short bursts of sprints.

When just starting a running regime, many people can find they are very out of breath within even the first 10–15 minutes of your run. This quite often means that your starting pace is incorrect and you are running too fast too quickly, but also that you are breathing wrong.

Increasing speed an overall pace during your runs is something that will happen over time when your body becomes acclimated to the workout. Adjusting your breath is one way to become more comfortable during your run.

The best way to change your breathing is by practicing the right techniques. When running, deep belly breathing is the correct way to take in air. This creates an increased and more efficient intake of oxygen during the run. Breathing in and inhaling the oxygen deep into your diaphragm also reduces the tendency to get a side stitch when you run. By doing this technique of breathing, you will be able to create a lot more air that takes up the entirety of your lungs.

Many runners may wonder if there is a difference between breathing from your nose or mouth or if one is better than the other. It may be surprising to some to know that you should be breathing from your mouth while running. While the oxygen coming through your nose stays warmer, you don’t ingest enough through your nose as you do while breathing through your mouth. Just breathing through your nose will not grant your body the right amount of oxygen needed to continue your run, so start breathing through your mouth while going on your regular runs.

When running there are studies that show a recommended rhythm to follow during your runs, but it is not necessarily right for every runner since our bodies all work differently. For example, depending on your running pace, when running at a lower intensity, you would try to take three steps that you are breathing in and then three steps to breath out.

Originally published at MalloryMaclellan.com on April 15, 2019.