In sports, things are a little different. This is where proper breathing is essential to avoid literally getting out of breath, losing your footing, or being buried under heavy weight. Breathing means endurance and strength in the muscles combined with a clear state of mind. We at wodstore want to give you an understanding of what you should pay attention to on the way to breathing properly and how you can already provide your lungs with the necessary spring cleaning!
Dumb question: Why do we need breathing in sports?
Why are we asking about your air intake? Because in our opinion you should first think about why and how your breathing rhythm comes about before you try to modify it.Everything begins and ends with breathing. We can get by without more or less essential nutrients for a while, but without air supply it quickly becomes a struggle. Oxygen is needed in order to be able to process nutrients at all via your and our metabolism. Without oxygen, our cells literally die. You can get more energy, especially if you let concentrated and targeted oxygen into your body. Here at the latest, an appropriate breathing technique for athletes, competitive athletes and co. an absolute game changer! Breathing itself passes through the trachea and through the lungs. From there, the rest of the cardiovascular system is activated and the system is kept going. This happens due to a constant gradient of pressure build-up, the creation of negative pressure and pressure drop. Figuratively speaking, the oxygen is pumped through your body. If this pump fails at any point in the system, proper breathing becomes critical.
Keep more in the tank - note the pace!
Overpacing is a deadly sin we've all been guilty of! Above all, there is a reason that you should prioritize less in all sporting matters than you do up to now: Your ego has pushed in front of your clear thoughts and thus completely eliminated your tactics. At this point, imagine your box or studio. A community event, a marathon row for time, is on the WOD plan. The first few intervals in which it is your turn everything is still civilized. But at some point you are warm and in mode, the ambition has grabbed you. After all, with every meter you cover, you make sure that the others in your team have less work to do, right? A few minutes later the time has come, the lactate devil has struck and your arms are tight. Nothing works anymore.Keep a clear head!
Better pacing would have been an advantage here. After all, it helps everyone to catch their breath between strenuous phases. This analogy not only applies to sports, but also helps you in everyday life. You can be sure that a good team will catch you at these points, so that you can hit the ground running again later without having to lose any of your performance as an athlete due to last-minute decisions!
Are you out of breath? Help is coming!
But how do you manage to maximize the intake of oxygen? Phenomena like Wim Hof impressively show that almost anything is possible with a solidly built mindset, combined with masses of fresh air. There are two ways to do this: First, you can use yoga in the warm-up or cool-down to find your rhythm. With a little practice, you can manipulate your breathing rate to your advantage. With this you get ready for the WOD of your box at the same time, while you explore your inner center and mobility. Two birds with one stone!Support through the latest technology:
The second version is more technical, but has become known like wildfire in the functional fitness circle. Airwaav will silence you, and in a good way! The mouthpiece fits snugly in your mouth and keeps your tongue, teeth and palate in shape, so that the largest possible air channel is created. The mouthpiece is provided with a bite area, an "intake bar" for breathing yourself and the clamping material. So you breathe deeper and more effectively, even under load. Airwaav is the gadget for you if breathing and pacing should mutate into a kind of no brainer from now on. You can cling to your times and weights all by yourself, free space for enough oxygen is created on the run!
How are you? Do you use mouthpieces like Airwaav 's to make it easier for you to breathe, or do you stay puristic? Feel free to leave us a comment to chat about it!