Cardio is one of the essential elements of training for any athlete, be it bodybuilding, crossfit or other strength sports. It is very important to observe all the subtleties when performing exercises related to working out the heart muscle. The most important element can be considered correct breathing while running. What features should be considered while running? How to breathe: nose or mouth? And what to do if your side hurts from running?
Why is it important to monitor your breathing?
Breathing is an important part of any exercise, not just running. Indeed, without oxygen, the muscles switch to anaerobic glycolysis, which significantly reduces their endurance and reduces the effectiveness of exercise. Breathing:
- Provides oxygen to the entire body.
- Ensures the normal functioning of the brain, which is responsible for coordination.
- Reduces the stress factor of running, which reduces the catabolic factor.
- Aids in fat burning, as completed fats can only be oxidized when there is a lot of oxygen.
- Helps get rid of excess liver glycogen and increase overall running time.
- Helps to control the pulse: the deeper and more even breathing, the smaller it is. On the other hand, shallow, rapid mouth breathing helps to accelerate your heart muscle.
That is why it is important to follow your breathing technique not only when running, but also during basic exercises.
Nose or mouth?
The classic medium-intensity running technique involves breathing through the nose . The breathing technique is extremely simple, it is called 2-2:
- For every two steps (left and right), inhale.
- Exhale for the next two steps.
The technique can vary by 1-2, 2-1, 1-1, 3-3, 4-4 and others (the first number is the number of steps per inhalation, the second is for exhalation), depending on the intensity running. For example, when running to the finish line, 1-2, 2-1, or even 1-1 are often used.
Breathing through the mouth while running is not recommended for the following reasons:
- Oxygen, passing through the oral cavity, dries out the mucous system, which, with a general loss of fluid, causes discomfort.
- When inhaling deeply through the mouth, the pressure from the descending diaphragm is much higher, which can lead to more severe pain in the side.
Why does my side hurt while running and what should I do?
When running, pain may appear in the left or right side. The pain itself is not something critical, there may be several reasons for its appearance:
- Weak endurance, poor warm-up. Pain in this case means the accumulation of excess blood in the liver / spleen, which under pressure (from lowering the diaphragm during inhalation) causes pain. That is why you need to gradually increase the pace and duration of your workouts. A good warm-up is also necessary not only for the joints, but for the cardiovascular system. If you experience this kind of pain at the beginning of your workout, you need to slow down, walk and breathe deeply and slowly.
- Shallow breathing that is too frequent, such as a 1-1 pattern on low to medium intensity running, may also be the cause. All you need to do is breathe more deeply and evenly.
- Recent meal. The stomach presses on the diaphragm, and she presses on the lungs. If you have a heavy meal, you need a break of at least 1.5-2 hours.
- Chronic diseases of internal organs. For example, this can be with hepatitis. Only a timely examination will help here (for example, an ultrasound of the abdominal cavity before starting running training) and a consultation with a doctor.
How to breathe?
In fact, correct breathing technically varies depending on the type of running. For efficiency and health, different techniques are used. For example, when running at maximum speed, you need to breathe as you can, but when working in a moderate heart rate zone, you need to adhere to strict techniques that will increase running efficiency and help get rid of excess fat.
Let’s take a closer look at how to breathe correctly while running in different cases:
Other recommendations
There are a few other breathing guidelines that can improve your running performance:
- Breathe rhythmically. Remember that with each breath your heart speeds up, and if you breathe raggedly and out of rhythm, then you artificially create an “arrhythmia”, which increases the load not only on the heart, but on all organs.
- If it hurts in the side, take a step, breathe deeper and slower. While inhaling, press on the affected area with your fingers, and while exhaling, release. After 2-3 cycles, the pain should stop.
- If your heart begins to tingle while running, lower the intensity and switch to diaphragmatic deep mouth breathing.
In summary
Having mastered the correct nose breathing technique while running, you will not only improve your well-being (the side will stop hurting), but also improve your performance, in addition, speed up the fat burning process.
The main thing to remember is that if you are running at maximum speed (during a race or a difficult WOD for a time), breathing is important, however, if you are short of air, it is better to switch to shallow breathing. Your main task is to provide the body with a sufficient amount of oxygen. Only regular training in the aerobic zone will help develop your lungs and heart muscles, which will allow you to run longer, faster and without disturbing breathing.
