Proper Breathing Technique while running and biking?
Wow. I just did a google search for breathing techniques and man there is some interesting theories and practices out there that don't make ANY sense to me. As my OS plan pushes me harder and harder I see where breathing well has a significant impact on my heart rate. I believe I've dialed in on what works well for me, but wanted to know what the EN's family approach to breathing is, I've done searches in the EN website a few different areas and can't seem to find anything.
So many different ideas, breath through nose only (huh!), in through nose out through mouth, long deep breaths, short quick breaths, one eye closed (kidding 
), help.
I typically breathe through both mouth and nose, predominantly through mouth. When I'm pushing my heart rate well into Z4 range or creeping into Z5 I'll make a concerted effort to make sure I grab a good breath through my nose each 10 - 15 inhales, I feel the counting distracts me from some pain too.
Thanks in advance for your input,
Jonas McCluskey
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last year working with trainer road the computer would have on its screen exhale fully taking in deep breath, or something like that. I noticed in doing so my heart rate would go down 1 to 3 BPM, per HR strap. I would use that for running too not all the time every now and then if my effort level was high to insure I wasn't taking short panting breaths.
The tough part for me is keeping the lower abdomen contracted to maintain pelvic tilt AND breathing this way when running... still haven't quite gotten the hang of that!
I cannot breathe through my nose, ever. I don't even breathe through my nose while I'm sitting here typing or while I'm asleep. I'm simply a "mouth breather". Maybe it's a deviated septum, maybe it's all the yrs I spent as a wrestler growing up where I was trying to get the maximum air into my body all the time, but it's a very hard habit to break. And I definitely breathe only through my mouth while swimming, biking, and running...
And like David said above, it's very important while swimming. Many people preach to constantly be blowing small bubbles under the water so you can just inhale when you turn your head to breathe. I cannot do this... I breathe out forcefully under water the second before I turn my head to inhale, but I am holding my breath for the rest of my strokes. No something anyone will teach you, but it works for me. If you exhale and then inhale while your head id turned and out of the water, you will be spending too much time with your face out of the water and it will certainly be slowing you down.
The only time I actively alter my breathing is when I get a side stitch (aka lung cramp) which is really a diaphram issue. When they do occur, I breath in and out normally but after the usual exhale, I do an additional short, forceful exhale to fully deflate my lungs. Typically, after 10 - 15 of these, the stitch abates and I resume normal breathing.
... now the one eye closed thing..... does it matter which eye? or do you alternate as you run to sync the winking to your stride?
@Steve - OH how I KNOW that side stitch! It's horrible - and I'm referring to the stitch that always occurs on the right... yes, it's a diaphragm thing. There's a ligament that connects the diaphragm and the liver, and if the liver is too "heavy" after a fatty meal, alcohol, other toxins... then it tugs that ligament and you get that awful stitch! I find I have to take a long, forced inhale and hold it for a few moments to get rid of it - the diaphragm expands, shortening the ligament and it relaxes after that. Took me forever to find out what was causing that stitch, but now that I understand it I can get rid of it a lot faster (and, um... if I'd just give up that fishbowl... I mean glassful.... of wine, it'd probably go away altogether!)
My temptation in responding to this thread is to say ... "Take a DEEP breath ... and step AWAY from the computer!"
But, alas, I can't stop there. First off, if you are thinking about, or aware of your breathing during the first 80-90 miles of an IM bike, or the first 10-11 miles of the run - you are going too hard/fast, and need to slow down. You've got better things to be doing, such as looking at your PM, managing your pace, remembering to drink, eat, etc, than trying to make any effort to alter your body's natural respiration. So that applies to similar paced activities while training - warm-ups, recovery, cool-downs, EP, maybe even MP and 80-85% eforts.
I'm with Steven, above. The main thing for me about breathing is to use it as a key factor in RPE, to learn how to associate effort with frequency of breathing. The hardest/fastest I ever breath is what I would call 1:2, meaning I breath with every left pedal stroke or left footfall. I know I can sustain that for maybe 1:45-2 minutes max, so it is just for the end of longer intervals, or for IP intervals. When things get hard, and I think I am just on the edge of moving from, say 1:6 down to 1:4, or 1:4 down to 1:2, I do make an effort to think about and see if I can delay that switchover by taking deeper, fuller breaths.
Most important, when doing intervals, I use the combination of breath volume and frequency noted above to help me stay within the target range of the interval, as much as or even more so than using pace or power.
Finally, mounth vs. nose - again, don't over think it. Ideally, at rest, one should be nose breathing, to help warm, moisten, and cleanse the air. As work level increases, your body will naturally add mouth breathing, as much more volume per unit time can be obtained that way. But even while mouth breathing, you will be taking in some air via the nose as well. It's like your heart - you wouldn't try to control your heart rate or stroke volume, now, would you? Your non-conscious control systems are much better at doing those things then your slow moving conscious mind is.
FWIW, during Z4 intervals, I concentrate on using my diaphram to try and fill my lungs (as opposed to lots of little shallow breaths).
In yoga, we start off with deep breathing, which they say supposedly helps with lung capacity. At first I thought it was a load of crap, just going through the motions of that particular routine, but multiple times I've found that breathing in a relaxed, deep manner during a hard interval or hill repeat causes my HR to go down slightly, and it actually eases the 'OW STOP!' cry from the muscles temporarily. Maybe it's psychosomatic, but whatever - it's effective.
Jess & Steve - I used to get that stitch all the time with serious exertion. What fixed it for me was to initiate my inhalations and exhalation on a left foot impact. Don't ask me why, but that did the trick. I never get the side stitch anymore.
Using Al's numbers, what that usually works out for me in a Zone 1 through Zone 4 interval is a 1:4, or mayyyybeee a 1:6, pattern. I can hold it at 1:4 in a Zone 5 effort for the first couple of minutes, 6-7 max, and then I am on a 1:2 ratio.