Breathe Better, Perform Better: Lessons From Respiratory Training
Why We Were Skipping Steps in Breath Training
Kyle and I discuss that we may have been in error jumping straight to high-frequency breathing drills — training athletes to hit 50–60 breaths per minute — without teaching them to take full, efficient breaths first.
The result?
Athletes learn to move air quickly, but not deeply. They’re cycling air through the trachea dead space — where no gas exchange happens — instead of pulling it deep into the lungs where oxygen and carbon dioxide actually swap.
A bigger breath is a better breath. It’s more efficient and more productive — even if it feels harder at first.
Breathing Physiology 101
Understanding this matters because it explains why depth matters more than speed.
- Effort on Both Ends: You work to fill the lungs and to empty them. The resting “set point” is about half full — you have to work to go past that.
- Dead Space: The first portion of every inhale doesn’t exchange gas; it just fills the airway.
- Sweet Spot: Gas exchange happens in the lower lungs, so you need to reach that zone for effective breathing…this means deep breaths.
The takeaway: shallow breathing is wasted in the “dead space.” Full expansion accesses the functional zones where real exchange happens.
The Cardiac Output Analogy
Think of breathing like cardiac output:
- Cardiac Output = Stroke Volume × Heart Rate
- Ventilation = Tidal Volume × Respiratory Rate
There’s a productive ceiling for both heart rate and breathing rate. Beyond about 60 breaths per minute, you’re just cycling air in and out of your throat.
To increase total ventilation, improve stroke volume for the lungs — your tidal volume. Deepen your breaths before you speed them up.
Build bigger breaths before faster ones.
When Movement Dictates Breathing
In CrossFit, you can’t breathe faster than the movement allows.
Each rep creates a rhythm. A thruster or GHD sit-up limits when you can inhale or exhale. Even in cyclical movements like rowing or biking, your position (front rack compression, torso angle, bracing) dictates which breathing patterns are possible.
So, if you can’t breathe faster, your only other lever is to breathe bigger — to pull in more air with each breath.
Deep vs. Fast Breathing (And Why It Matters)
Here’s a simple example:
- Shallow breathing at 50 breaths/min with 2L per breath = 100L per minute
- Deeper breathing at 50 breaths/min with 4L per breath = 200L per minute
That’s double the ventilation with the same frequency.
When you’re moving through a MetCon, you’ll likely hit 30–45 breaths per minute due to movement rhythm. Training expansion first gives you the capacity to make those 30–45 breaths count.
Mechanics and Movement: The Rowing Example
Rowing exposes how position affects breathing:
- Your diaphragm is compressed.
- Your ribs press against your thighs.
- The bar path limits torso expansion.
Some athletes — especially those with large rib cages or limited thoracic mobility — simply can’t expand their diaphragm effectively in that position.
Solution: train posterior rib expansion and experiment with double breathing (two breaths per stroke) if your mechanics demand it.
The key is adaptability: you should be able to breathe effectively in any position — standing, seated, braced, or moving dynamically.
Movement-Specific Breathing Strategies
Every movement in CrossFit presents a different breathing challenge:
- Seated Breathing: Rowing, Echo Bike — diaphragm compressed, focus on rib expansion.
- Dynamic Breathing: Running, Double Unders — coordinate bracing and breath rhythm.
- Barbell Breathing: Overhead vs. Front Rack vs. Back Rack — find inhale/exhale windows that align with bracing phases.
- Prone Breathing: Burpees — plan when you’ll actually breathe.
And yes, add the belt variable — intra-abdominal pressure changes everything.
If you can breathe deep and fast, braced or relaxed, you’ve developed adaptable breathing — the kind that wins workouts.
How to Teach & Train Breathing
If you’re coaching or developing your own skill set:
- Start With Expansion
- Use the Breathe Way Better or balloon drills to train full lung volume.
- Focus on slow, deep breathing before layering on speed.
- Add Coordination Later
- Once deep breaths feel natural, practice rhythmic breathing at higher frequencies.
- Apply It In Movement
- Identify where in each movement you can inhale/exhale.
- Teach “transition breathing” — big, fast breaths between stations.
- Make It Habitual
- Integrate breath drills into warm-ups, cooldowns, or aerobic intervals.
- Use nose breathing or breath holds for awareness, not as competition habits.
Coaching Realities
Breathing faults aren’t as obvious as shallow squats or missed reps. Music, chaos, and movement make it hard to spot.
Ask better questions instead:
- “Why did you slow down?”
- “Did you feel like you couldn’t catch your breath or like your legs were failing?”
If the answer is “I felt like I was suffocating,” you’re looking at a breathing problem.
Final Takeaway
You can’t outwork poor breathing.
- Bigger breaths unlock more usable oxygen.
- Expansion training builds the foundation for efficient, high-rate breathing.
- Movement-specific adaptation ensures your lungs keep up with your muscles.
Start slow. Build control. Then, breathe fast — and breathe well.
