Big Breath DRill

Breathing is important. Getting people to focus on breathing is hard though, because it feels boring and uncomfortable because your brain is going one million miles per hour and taking a chance to chill out is hard. I’ve found that because of that, the most simple breathing drills are best. I’ll lay one out below that you should try this week.

The goal of taking some breaths are:

• Improve breathing mechanics - by focusing on breathing for a few minutes, hopefully afterwards, you can breathe better and access better positions. Think of it as a mobility drill for your whole body.

• Wind up or down, change your state. Depending on the sequence, a few minutes of breathing can make you feel chill or fired up. The one below is more about feeling awake.

• Improve posture; when you get better breaths, you’re less willing to sacrifice them to poor positions. When you know what a good breath feels like, you’ll recognize a short, shallow breath too.

Thinking about your diaphragm, or expanding your ribs and into your lower back complicates things. And while I want your breathing mechanics to improve, I’m not sure me cueing ‘use your diaphragm’ is going to actually help accomplish that. The best way to get a better breath is to get some reps in trying to fill up as big as you can.

Initially, you might be all in your chest and shoulders, but as the reps (breaths) accumulate, you can get more air in and will get more expansion throughout the whole trunk. After a long breath hold, you’ll get even more air in, and with it, better mechanics.

Here’s the drill:

Lay down on your back, feet on the wall.

For 90-120 seconds, take big, deep, expanding breaths with a sharp, quick exhale.

Exhale all of your last breath and hold.

Repeat when you’re ready to take your next breath.

*repeat 2-3 rounds

The longer you try to hold that exhale, the better your next round will be. Give it a shot!

Justin Miner

@justinminergain