HOW TO: BREATHING AND BRACING

Oftentimes, when people discuss breathing techniques or “breath work” they are directly correlating it with lifting. However, breathing correctly has many more benefits than just creating more tension and stability (bracing) for various strength feats. In this article, I hope to help educate you on the many health benefits of doing specific breath work, as well as ways to incorporate it into your training routine so you can start hitting PR’s.

STOP BREATHING THROUGH YOUR MOUTH!!

You heard that correctly, your main passageway should be your nose. This is for many reasons, some of which include:

1. The nose is a filter for the air that we inhale and is our 1st defense mechanism against allergens and viruses
2. The many chambers of the nose heats, pressurizes, and moistens the air we breathe in so that it can be utilized by the lungs easier
3. Research shows your body obtains 20% more oxygen when breathing through your nose- James Nestor
4. You want to slow down your breaths and allow the uptake of Oxygen and exhalation of Carbon Dioxide

BENEFITS OF USING BREATH WORK OR BREATHING DRILLS IN YOUR DAILY ROUTINE

In a study of over 5,000 people, they found the #1 marker for longevity was lung capacity, not genetics or diet. This makes perfect sense, the larger and healthier your lungs are the better quality of life you will have.

Some other benefits include:

1. Increased posture and spinal alignment
2. Increased Receptivity of the abdominals
3. Better pressurization of air for bracing and stabilizing the spine

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT BREATHING

1. EVERYONE KNOWS HOW TO BREATHE CORRECTLY:

With posture, physical fitness level, and stress all being factors in how effectively we breathe it is easy to understand why it would be hard for most people to do this correctly. With the abundance of high-stress desk jobs and sedentary lifestyles I firmly believe that the general population could benefit the most from breathing drills in their daily routine.

In reality, most people are shallow breathers and this has a negative effect on the chemistry of our bodies. It increases oxidative stress and can negatively affect our mental and physical state.

2. YOU SHOULD ONLY “BELLY” BREATHE:

I see this butchered quite often as trainers and strength coaches often yell to their clients or athletes “breathe through the belly” and “your ribs shouldn't move”. If you have any understanding of where the lungs are in relation to the abdominal cavity you will notice that the lungs are behind the ribs and as the lungs expand (diaphragm emptying) the ribs should expand as well to clear space for the lungs. However, this is different from rib flair or seeing the sternum elevate during the breath and I will break down that difference in a later video.

BREATHING DRILLS

WIM-HOF METHOD

This method is super easy and is something I have added daily for over a year now. The drill goes as follows:

Step 1: Lay flat on your back with a pillow supporting your head

Step 2: Take 30 large breaths, in through the nose and out through the mouth forcefully and deep

Step 3: After 30 breaths fully exhale and hold your breath for 30 seconds

Step 4: Immediately following the breath hold, inhale and hold for an additional 15 seconds.

You will repeat the steps above 3 times. After about 2 weeks you can add 30 seconds to the breath holds to increase difficulty.

90/90 BREATHING

This is a drill that I really enjoy doing with my lifters as it reinforces how to create the most abdominal pressure with good posture.

EXTENDED BREATH HOLDING

Perform multiple sets of 30–90 second breath holds to increase blood flow and various other bodily functions

This will help increase tolerance to the build-up of CO2 and extraction of Oxygen.

BELT BREATHING

This is a great way to utilize a tool that most weight rooms will have available and will give them more tactile feedback to reinforce the breathing mechanics.

To reiterate, this doesn't have to be done to teach how to use a belt under load. I often will use this early in a progression long before ever having my athletes or clients use a belt under load.

Using breath work and other various drills in your day-to-day routine or to prime your body for heavy resistance training can be hugely beneficial if done correctly, and consistently. If you give it a go send us a comment and let us know what you think. Be on the lookout for our next “How To:” Article.