Breathing is one of the biggest performance boosters that is often overlooked in fitness. Using breath strategically can improve strength, endurance, recovery, and even mental focus. Here’s how to help your clients breathe smarter and get more out of every session.
Proper breathing goes beyond being a passive bodily function; it’s an essential performance tool. Research shows that breathing patterns affect oxygen delivery, core stability, and nervous system regulation, all of which contribute to training efficiency and injury prevention. Incorporating structured breath techniques into workout routines can improve results across various training modalities.
Also, it might feel natural to hold your breath while lifting weights, but avoid doing so! Habitual breath-holding can increase your blood pressure, potentially leading to dizziness, nausea, or even a heart attack.
Unless you’re consistently swimming laps, you may not give much thought to your breathing. However, this essential process is involved in nearly everything you do—whether you’re sitting at your desk, jogging around your neighborhood, or lifting heavy weights.
Breathing’s primary function is to deliver oxygenated blood throughout your body. This fuels every chemical reaction in the human body, including those required for exercise. For example, oxygen is necessary to produce energy that drives muscle movement and to replenish oxygen right afterward. During aerobic activity, the human body uses oxygen to create adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the primary energy source for cells.
When the human body is at rest, its breathing rate is typically about 12 to 15 breaths per minute. But as exercise begins, that rate increases to around 40 breaths per minute, depending on workout intensity and the individual’s fitness level. As the intensity of exercise increases, so does the human body’s demand for oxygen.
As both breathing and heart rate increase, the human body hits its first ventilatory threshold. This is the point when talking during exercise becomes challenging. During this phase, maintaining a steady breathing rhythm becomes more challenging. Inhales become longer than the human body’s exhales. This is a sign that the human body is approaching a high level of unsustainable fatigue.
Over time and with repetition, the human body adapts to regular exercise, making the respiratory and cardiovascular systems more efficient. This allows it to do the same amount of work with a lower breathing rate. The human body becomes much better at delivering oxygen where it’s needed. It also becomes more efficient at removing carbon dioxide, allowing the human body to handle higher-intensity workouts before it reaches its ventilatory threshold. For example, a newer, beginning client may struggle to speak during the warm-up part of the session, while a more veteran client with a higher fitness level will not. This is where breathing technique, not just fitness level, can affect performance. You can use the warm-up as a breathwork teaching moment for both new and more seasoned clients.
As a Fit Pro, you can use certain exercises as breathwork teachable moments as well. For example, you can monitor clients during their sessions for any poor breathing habits that could negatively impact performance or posture. Corrective strategies include, but are not limited to, breathing retraining exercises and include breathing cues during resistance and functional exercises. The following are more specific examples of the benefits of optimizing breath on performance:
Breathing in Exercise Performance
- Energy Efficiency and Oxygen Delivery: Effective breathing optimizes alveolar ventilation and oxygen absorption, enhancing aerobic metabolism and helping to delay fatigue during intense activity.
- Injury Prevention and Core Stability: Diaphragmatic and braced breathing help generate intra-abdominal pressure, which stabilizes the spine and lowers the risk of musculoskeletal injury during resistance training.
- Regulating the Nervous System: Breathing patterns influence both sympathetic and parasympathetic activity, affecting heart rate, stress response, and recovery.
Breathing Techniques
The following are examples of breathing techniques you can teach clients:
1. Diaphragmatic (Belly) Breathing
Instruct clients to breathe in through the nose, expanding the abdomen and lower ribs, then exhale completely while keeping the shoulders relaxed. This technique enhances oxygen intake, encourages core activation, and minimizes excess muscle tension. It’s the perfect technique for warm-ups, mobility exercises, and low-intensity workouts.
2. Breathwork During Strength Training
Instruct clients to inhale before exerting force to brace the core, and exhale during the concentric phase of the lift. For example, during a squat exercise, the client should inhale at the top before the descent, brace, then exhale as they rise (essentially, exhaling at the point when the lift is most difficult). This helps to increase power, improve spinal stability, and lower the risk of injury.
3. Breathwork During Endurance Training
Instruct clients to breathe through the nose at low to moderate intensities and to use a rhythmic breathing pattern (e.g., 2:2 inhale:exhale). As the intensity increases, instruct them to transition to breathing through the mouth. This enhances pacing, reduces side stitches, and improves heart rate regulation.
4. Breathwork for Recovery and Nervous System Regulation
Following a workout, instruct clients to inhale slowly through the nose for 4 seconds, then exhale slowly for 6–8 seconds, repeating for 3–5 minutes. This breathing pattern helps stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, reduces cortisol levels, and supports muscle recovery.
Final Thoughts
Intentional breathwork is an affordable yet highly effective approach that can boost strength, endurance, recovery, and movement quality. Fitness pros are encouraged to integrate evidence-based breathing techniques into their programs to improve client results and support long-term wellness.
References:
Hodges, P. W., & Gandevia, S. C. (2000). Activation of the human diaphragm during postural tasks. Journal of Physiology, 522(Pt 1), 165–175.
McConnell, A. K., & Romer, L. M. (2004). Respiratory muscle training in healthy individuals: physiological adaptations and performance implications. Journal of Sports Sciences, 22(1), 1–12.
Osar E. Integrative Movement Institute. (2009, March 4). Core Activation with proper breathing. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0s1GHAd7_Kk
