Better breathing for better running

Diaphragmatic breathing

No, this is not a post about breathing in your nose and out your mouth. Or is it in your mouth out your nose? Whatever. What really matters when it comes to maximizing your breathing capacity as a runner is where and how that pattern is initiated. Often we are either breathing too much (breathing rate changes are not proportionate to the tissue demands) and/or not using the right mechanism to do it (inefficient breathing muscle recruitment.) 
     While breathing is an autonomic process (meaning, our brain does it automatically), we can (and DO) still develop inefficient and dysfunctional ways of doing it. In fact, it's often easier to ignore until a problem arises.  What are some of those "problems?"

• side stitches (or those weird shoulder/neck cramps...you know the ones.)
• excessive exhaustion under stress ("why am I so out of breath? I'm in shape!")
• recurring, frequent injuries (despite foam rolling and stretching they won't stay away)
• not recovering well after exercise (elevated breathing and heart rate long past the workout)

*Additionally, inefficient breathing patterns can influence muscle tone and cause pain (i.e. low back from inefficient firing or diaphragm in conjunction with an unstable core wall.) 
    If you place one hand on your chest and one on your stomach while breathing, the stomach hand should be moving in and out. If the chest hand is instead noticeably moving up and down, you are using accessory breathing muscles instead of your primary breathing muscle (the diaphragm). It's like putting in the B team because you don't know how to use the A-squad. We must begin to use our bellies to breathe. 
    Coordinated diaphragm firing to control breathing + core wall firing = effective breathing and dynamic postural stability for the spine. Getting these two variables not only working, but working together is exponentially more important than doing endless simple core exercises (I'm looking at you people who practically hold your breath trying to do a 3min plank....stop.) 
     One example of a basic exercise that works to establish this effective breathing patterning is shown in the video on my Instagram account .

1. Lying on your back and initiate belly breathing
2. Bring your hips, knees and ankles to 90 degree angles 
3. Point arms towards the ceiling
4. Extend your right leg while reaching your right arm back towards the ground. Alternate. 
5. Throughout each movement your must maintain belly breathing and a tight, stable core. 
6. **Progress to using a resistance band around your ankles. 
7. Repeat daily for 3-4 weeks. 

  
  When a dysfunctional autonomic pattern gets engrained, we've got some work to do to dig a new trench back in the right direction. This exercise is a simple start to that. I recommend doing these pre-run to press the "start" button on that pattern before stressing your respiratory system on the run. Try this and notice the amazing changes that take place just by learning to breathe properly. 

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