Breathing techniques advice please

[lazybloke]

As above ^^. Your autonomic nervous system is a wonderful thing. It takes care of breathing for you. Don't overthink it.

Agreed, but the body has limits, one of which is how much oxygen the respiratory system can deliver. I don't think about breathing during normal exertion but I can't ignore the signs from my respiratory system when approaching the limits of my cycling performance.

And whilst I'm certain that my largest performance gains would be delivered through training & fitness, I don't think that technique should be ignored, and that might include breathing.

There are plenty of wannabee Tour de France riders in the Surrey Hills every weekend who spend thousands on the latest piece of carbon fibre. At least breathing is free!

 

[S-Express]

Agreed, but the body has limits, one of which is how much oxygen the respiratory system can deliver. I don't think about breathing during normal exertion but I can't ignore the signs from my respiratory system when approaching the limits of my cycling performance.

And whilst I'm certain that my largest performance gains would be delivered through training & fitness, I don't think that technique should be ignored, and that might include breathing.

There are plenty of wannabee Tour de France riders in the Surrey Hills every weekend who spend thousands on the latest piece of carbon fibre. At least breathing is free!

All very well saying that, but unless you can explain what your preferred technique is, I suspect it simply comes back to maintaining your effort level below or at threshold, rather than attempting to control your oxygen intake per se.

Unless by 'technique' you simply mean 'getting as much air into your lungs as required' - which isn't really a 'technique' as such, and kind of goes without saying.

 

[jimhead]

Take a look at the Buteyko breathing technique. It's normally used for treating asthma but also used for improving the performance of athletes.

 

[midlife]

It's pretty difficult to control your breathing in oxygen debt

Shaun

 

[S-Express]

Take a look at the Buteyko breathing technique. It's normally used for treating asthma but also used for improving the performance of athletes.

Except it's evidence of usefulness in treating asthma is highly dubious and evidence for efficacy in athletic performance is non-existent.

 

[Slick]

Some think there's something in it.

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/article/training-get-some-air-20349/

 

[screenman]

As a swimmer I concentrate on making space for the new air.

 

[lazybloke]

All very well saying that, but unless you can explain what your preferred technique is, I suspect it simply comes back to maintaining your effort level below or at threshold, rather than attempting to control your oxygen intake per se.

Unless by 'technique' you simply mean 'getting as much air into your lungs as required' - which isn't really a 'technique' as such, and kind of goes without saying.

That's okay, Cyclechat may be a wealth of amazing information, but I don't think I would try to use it to seek tailored physiological advice.
I certainly don't have a preferred technique, but I might find one by looking more closely at Obree's method and 'Buteyko" (thanks to @jimhead, will look later), plus any anecdotes that get posted here.

From what I remember last time I look into the matter, oxygen debt often means 'CO2 excess', and this is where breathing technique can supposedly make a difference.

 

[S-Express]

Some think there's something in it.

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/article/training-get-some-air-20349/

Thinking it is not the same as being able to prove it. Like all the other articles on the same topic, that one is devoid of any actual evidence.

 

[screenman]

That's okay, Cyclechat may be a wealth of amazing information, but I don't think I would try to use it to seek tailored physiological advice.
I certainly don't have a preferred technique, but I might find one by looking more closely at Obree's method and 'Buteyko" (thanks to @jimhead, will look later), plus any anecdotes that get posted here.

From what I remember last time I look into the matter, oxygen debt often means 'CO2 excess', and this is where breathing technique can supposedly make a difference.

As I said, making space for the new air.

 

[midlife]

That's okay, Cyclechat may be a wealth of amazing information, but I don't think I would try to use it to seek tailored physiological advice.
I certainly don't have a preferred technique, but I might find one by looking more closely at Obree's method and 'Buteyko" (thanks to @jimhead, will look later), plus any anecdotes that get posted here.

From what I remember last time I look into the matter, oxygen debt often means 'CO2 excess', and this is where breathing technique can supposedly make a difference.

What drives breathing is an increase in CO2. For people with poor lung function they have raised CO2 all the time so the CO2 drve is switched off and repaced by mechansm where lack of oxygen drives breathing. Tricky think is that when you give a lot of oxygen to those people ypou switch off that drive as well so they have a habit of stopping breating altogether!

Moral of the story is that over millons of years we have evolved a pretty efficient homeostatic mechanism for managing CO2 / O2 levels which is difficult to beat.

Shaun