Have you ever sat down and wondered how cyclists manage to ride their bikes for hours and hours until end?
Like running, cycling is a physically demanding sport. It requires dedication, resilience, and, above all, insurance of one’s safety and well-being. This is where breathing comes into play.
So, let’s learn about some breathing techniques learn cycling to ensure a less taxing experience.
The Science Behind Belly Breathing When Cycling | Active and Passive Breathing
If someone asks you how you breathe, you’re probably going to point to your nostrils and mouth. While that is correct, you must understand that as humans, we have a secret weapon within our abdomens that we seldom use when we breathe.
This is a muscle known as the diaphragm. When we inhale, this floor contracts and moves downwards. However, when we exhale, it expands and returns to it’s original dome-like shape. Breathing in this manner is known as active breathing.
Most of us breathe in a way that activates our chest and vocal cords. This could be quite detrimental to our neck, shoulders, and back. This is referred to as passive breathing.
The breathing exercises we’ll discuss in this section will harness a stronger activation of the diaphragm than the chest. These will release unnecessary pressure on the rest of the body and allow for better respiratory habits on the road.
Good Breathing Exercises and Tips for Respiratory Muscle Training
It goes without saying that nobody can be excellent at everything without practice. Believe it or not, this is the case with breathing too.
This section of the article dives into some proper breathing exercises and techniques that can improve your performance on the road, ensuring a much healthier lifestyle for yourself.
Practice Breathing Deeply
To acquaint yourself with active breathing, it’s important to start by taking deep breaths. This is a great way to elevate breathing efficiency as you ride across long distances.
The key is to take in bursts of oxygen in short deliberate breaths. This will help you achieve your lung capacity and get your body accustomed to processing it.
In case you’re a little clueless as to how you should approach this, consider watching a baby breathe. This can help you better understand the notion of breathing from your stomach.
Sit Upright
The way you practice should emulate the scenario of a cyclist riding a bike. This is why sitting upright is important.
Repositioning yourself in this particular position is also helpful as it enables your diaphragm to function more optimally. But this might not work for all forms of cycling.
Make sure to incorporate a mix of bent and upright positions to prepare yourself for any and every cycling endeavor out there.
Inhale Through Your Mouth and Exhale Out of Your Nose
This breathing approach is popular with people engaging in a range of strenuous and physically demanding activities like badminton, football, and even going to the gym. Thankfully, cyclists can use this method as well.
Besides, it’s pretty self-explanatory. Breathing in through your mouth and out of your nose helps you avoid nasal congestion, breathing difficulties, and allows the air to circulate better resulting enabling your body to achieve greater oxygen absorption.
Control Your Breathing
Another way to improve the way you breathe is by regulating your breathing pattern. Researchers suggest that restricting the number of breaths you take to 12 per minute can be quite beneficial to your well-being.
This is why it’s important to practice inhaling for 3-6 seconds, holding it in for 2 seconds, and then letting it go for another 3-6 seconds.
To make sure you’re doing it properly, place your hand over your sternum and the top of your abdomen. They key is to feel your stomach suck in and release each breath of air.
So Have You Learned How To Breathe Better?
And there you have it! A succinct review of some of the best respiratory exercises for cyclists. These can help instill good breathing habits into your cycling journey and everyday life as well.
