Breathing while running. How to do it right?
Breathe calmly through the nose
A successful run also depends on proper breathing. When you breathe calmly through your nose, you take about half a liter of air into your lungs. For an endurance athlete, the air taken in can increase to as much as four liters under stress. How much lung volume you actually have can be tested with simple home remedies. (see lung volume test)
Breathing is an automatism of the human body. If a runner is aware of it, then breathing can positively influence the run.
The basic secret is deep inhalation, which is based on equally deep exhalation. For slow runs, this should be done through the nose. The reasons are obvious: the air is filtered, warmed up and does not negatively affect the throat and pharynx, especially in cold temperatures. But at a faster pace, it's natural to breathe through the mouth. If only because the body needs more oxygen.
In addition, when breathing in, you should breathe into your abdomen. Abdominal breathing, or so-called diaphragmatic breathing, is the most effective because it carries oxygen to the lower areas of the lungs, allowing oxygen to remain in the body longer. This type of breathing is best practiced while lying on your back at rest. When exhaling, the abdominal wall should rise and not the chest.
Breathing too shallowly can lead to problems such as side stitching. In addition, one is not as efficient, since the lungs and also the musculature are not optimally supplied with oxygen.
The right breathing rhythm
This is usually found by itself when running. One should not concentrate too much on a certain rhythm. As a rule:
It should take the same number of steps toinhale and exhale. But especially when it comes to rhythm, the rule is that you should breathe at the pace at which you feel most comfortable. Ultimately, the running pace also influences the breathing rhythm.
Lung volume test
Preparation: Take a balloon that has already been inflated a few times so that it is already somewhat stretched, and a bucket filled to the brim with water.
The experiment: inhale air to the maximum and inflate the balloon, knotting the balloon. Push the balloon into the filled bucket until it is below the water line. Be careful not to displace additional water with your hands. Remove balloon from water. Use a measuring cup to add water to the bucket, but measure the water added, as the amount of water added is the approximate lung volume.
