(heavy breathing)
- Breathing.
With each breath, we supply our muscles
with the oxygen they need to function.
And as we push ourselves harder,
the more oxygen our muscles need.
For some, breathing whilst running
can feel short and it can feel difficult.
Whilst for others,
they perhaps rarely give it any thought.
They just do it.
But what if I told you
I could help you to breathe more efficiently.
Yeah, if you could breathe more efficiently whilst running,
you could not only make the whole experience of running
that little bit more pleasant,
you could also improve your performance of running.
And even you're someone that rarely ever thinks about
your breathing whilst running,
there is a chance you could breathe more effectively.
Now I'm gonna go straight in on that age old debate of
whether you should breathe in through your nose
or through your mouth whilst running?
What do you do?
(jazz music)
well, that's pretty interesting.
Although, I've always been told
that you should breathe in through your nose
and out through your mouth.
And I'm sure you've all heard the same.
It's spoken about a lot about in things like yoga,
and martial arts.
But personally speaking,
and having spoken to some top runners,
that is really quite hard
when you start to do any kind
of vigorous activity such as running.
Particularly as we start to run harder or run faster.
Now, obviously our muscles need oxygen to keep moving
and breathing through the mouth actually allows
a much greater amount of oxygen
as compared to the nose per breath.
Although you could obviously argue
that the nose does a great job of warming that air
and even filtering that air.
So for slow paces, breathing through the nose
is absolutely fine.
But as we start to increase the pace
and start to work at higher intensities,
then you really don't want to be depriving your body
of that all important oxygen.
So you wanna go for the maximum oxygen uptake
and as reported that is the mouth.
(upbeat music)
now to get the most out of your breathing,
make sure you don't fall into the bad habit
of what's called chest breathing
as opposed to what's referred to as
breathing into your belly.
So here's the deal with chest breathing
it is essentially quite a weak form of breathing.
It's quite shallow meaning
we can't get the maximum amount of oxygen into our lungs
and also we can't expel our lungs fully when we exhale.
Whereas your breathing should be diaphragmatic
meaning the action of inhaling and exhaling
should extend right down into your belly
or so it feels.
Now as you breath in, your belly
or your stomach should expand and contract
as your diaphragm forces more air into and out of your lungs
and therefore meaning you can take more oxygen in
with every breath.
Okay but it's actually the rhythm of the breathing
that a lot of people really struggle with.
Now, at a comfortable steady pace what I would advise
is trying to strive for something like
a two to two rhythm ratio
or even a three to three rhythm ratio.
And basically that means that you will inhale
for two or three strides
and then exhale for another two or three strides.
And that should be fairly easy and comfortable
to maintain at a steady pace.
But obviously as start to run faster
we start to increase the intensity
then you may want to move towards a two to one rhythm ratio.
And that basically means inhaling for two strides
and then exhaling for one stride.
Now obviously this does all take
a little bit of trial and error
and takes time for you to get used to it
and learn how to bring your breathing pattern
in line with your own striding pattern.
And ultimately avoiding hyperventilation.
(upbeat music)
Now to really allow your lungs to fill
to their proper capacity,
it's important that you maintain
a good posture whilst you run.
See, as you start to slump forward
perhaps as you start to fatigue
then that can actually restrict
the capacity of your lungs and how well they operate
which in turn can then lead to more fatigue.
So, to help you out here
I was always told to imagine
that you've got a piece of string
coming from the crown of your head
and it's pulling you upwards whilst you run
so maintaining that good posture throughout.
And finally, practice makes perfect
and this means before running too.
Which might sound really odd
given that breathing is something
that our body does instinctively anyway.
But if you are someone that is struggling
with your breathing whilst running
then this could really help
and if you're actually someone
that is not reporting the issues
of breathing whilst running
then well this could just be a nice relaxation
if nothing else.
Either standing or if you want to
you can lie on the floor with your hand on your belly
and breathe in deeply.
Breathe deeply enough that your hand rises over your belly.
This allows the oxygen to flow through your lungs
for optimal intake
and then release letting your belly
and hand lower back down.
Now it's important to know that nobody is the same.
There isn't a single breathing pattern or rhythm
that works for everyone.
Research has actually shown
that runners have varying different
breathing patterns and rhythms
but they're consistent in them.
So it's all about finding a rhythm
that works for you and you feel comfortable with
and that you can adapt for different changes
in intensity or pace.
Now if you are someone that has struggled
with your breathing whilst running before
then please do get in touch
in the comment section below.
We love to hear from you.
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