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Bilateral Breathing
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 2004-11-29 3:50 PM |
Expert  1166    Colchester, CT |  Subject: Bilateral BreathingI went to the pool today to work on bilateral breathing. Last time I was at the massage therapist, she suggested that I was getting a muscle imbalance due to breathing on only my right side. So the goal for this month is to become proficient in bilateral breathing. After warming up for 300 yards, I started off by breathing only on my left side. If felt like I was starting all over again, out of breath after 25 yards, feeling like I was drowning, etc. After about 200 yds, it started to feel more comfortable, so I switched to breathing every 3 strokes. What a difference. I felt a lot smoother in the water, really feeling like a swimmer for once. I was still struggling a bit on the left side, but I felt a lot more balanced in the water. The two major things I noticed, were one, I swam a lot straighter. I always veered to the right when I breathed only on my right side, and I really had to concentrate to keep straight. With the bilateral breathing, I had no problem staying straight down the lane, and never really had to focus on it. The second, is that I almost immediately dropped my SPL from 24 to 21 without even trying. So now I'm a convert, bilateral breathing is the way to go, at least for me. So for the month of December, the goal is to practice, practice practice, to get ready to leap into a program starting in January. Chris |
| 2004-11-29 4:00 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Pro 3906  St Charles, IL | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing My story is about the same. It is well worth the few sessions in the pool it takes you to train yourself to do it. There is a learning curve to it, and you feel really uncomfortable for the first couple hundred meters on the 'new' side. After that, it comes on pretty quick. A few months later now and I don't even think about it. Breath every 3rd ( or 5th ) stroke. Feel a lot more balanced in the pool too. -Chris |
| 2004-11-29 4:01 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Resident Curmudgeon 25290 The Road Back Gold member | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing WOw! With improvements like that, maybe you should go to trilateral, or even quadlateral breathing. |
| 2004-11-29 4:07 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Extreme Veteran 347 Chapel Hill, North Carolina | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing I currently breath only on the right. Swim session tomorrow, and for the next couple of weeks will be focused on comfortable bilateral breathing. Smooth is fast, right? |
| 2004-11-29 4:25 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Extreme Veteran 381 Peoria, Arizona | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing Right now, I only breath on my left side. For now, I am going to stick with that b/c I am still getting used to swimming again, but once that is accomplished - probably another couple weeks - I will start working on bilateral breathing. :-) Nothing worse than being in open water with a splasher/wave maker to the only side you can breath on. Never personally happened, but I have heard some horror stories. |
| 2004-11-29 4:28 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Elite 3498 Chicago | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing I originally breathed on both sides for years, but switched to my more comfortable side (right side) this past season. What I do now is do bilateral breathing during my warm ups and cool downs but when I'm doing intervals I breath on one side since I'm going so fast I need the extra air! IMHO, in an open water race (which 99.9% of triathlon racing is) it's best to be comfortable breathing on either side because you never know where the swells will be coming from or where those arms/legs will be coming from or where the sun will be blinding you from... |
| 2004-11-29 4:45 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Elite 2468 Racine, WI | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing I started bilateral breathing on every 3rd breath a couple of years ago in pre-tri days. I've been working on some of the stuff in TI recently and had a hard time keeping my breathing down to every 3rd while taking more time on each stroke...felt like I was holding my breath, so I had to go to unilateral breathing for a while. I'd breathe right going one direction and left going the other to keep my muscles balanced.I'm back to every 3 rd breath tho and what a difference. I have to agree with the ability to breathe on either side being a huge plus in a race...helps keep you from drowning when someone is splashing to one side of you. Every 5th tho CHris...I'm impressed! |
| 2004-11-29 5:49 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Veteran 184 MA | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing I voted only on the left as that is my favorite side. I force myself to breathe on the right for some amount of 25s every time I am in the pool. I feel like I am running out of air if I try to bilateral breathe. It is interesting that so few folks picked the left side. I am left handed - I wonder if it is related. Deb |
| 2004-11-29 7:20 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Champion 7704 Williamston, Michigan | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing I have tried both sides, but it hurts my neck to the left so I just go to the right. In races I tend to take 4 strokes with my face in the water the 2 holding my head up to see where I am going. Works for me. In my first tri my lifeguard training just kicked in and saved my butt, or else I would have been way off course. |
| 2004-11-29 7:31 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Master 1275 Sonoma County, CA | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing i bilateral breathe....(only cuz i learned on swim team years and years ago). but something that helps train yourself...going up the lane breathe on the rigth...going down the lane breathe onthe left....keep switching it up like that and train yourself that way and it makes the adjustment a lot easier.... |
| 2004-11-30 9:19 AM in reply to: #87388 |
Veteran 191 New Haven, Connecticut | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing When I made the switch to bilateral breathing, I found that the easiest way to make the aforementioned transformation was simply to practice bilateral breathing while wearing fins. Using fins will allow one to more easily stay on top of the water. Also, I found it highly beneficial to study my hand and head positioning when breathing to my left in order to copy this motion to the new side, my right side. Lastly, it's inevitable that you will swallow some pool water before perfecting this breathing method. Good Luck! |
| 2004-11-30 9:27 AM in reply to: #87388 |
Member 22 Croatia | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing on training I breath bilateral. when I am on open water, or ont he races I breath mostlly on one side. Breathing on just one side gives me chance to contole others in the race. chris |
| 2004-11-30 11:41 AM in reply to: #87388 |
Veteran 115 San Antonio, TX | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing I went through the same thing. It took me a while to get used to the bilateral breathing, but now breathing to only one side feels awkward. |
| 2004-11-30 12:07 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Expert 770 acton, Ma | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing Well, I've been a bilateral breather for years and am now switching to left side breathing. While I don't feel as smooth (yet), I also don't feel as winded after each length (since I'm breathing more often I'm getting more oxygen). I've been experimenting wit hthis for about a week. We'll see how it goes. |
| 2004-11-30 12:59 PM in reply to: #87701 |
Extreme Veteran 347 Chapel Hill, North Carolina | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing tri_again - 2004-11-30 12:07 PM Well, I've been a bilateral breather for years and am now switching to left side breathing. While I don't feel as smooth (yet), I also don't feel as winded after each length (since I'm breathing more often I'm getting more oxygen). I've been experimenting wit hthis for about a week. We'll see how it goes. Joanne, this is funny......I'm going to switch to bilateral breathing to get more oxygen. I have naturally been breathing on my right side, but every 4th stroke. I don't know if I could breathe every two strokes. That seems like it would be too fast for me. Bilateral will get me from every 4 strokes to every 3. |
| 2004-11-30 1:14 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Veteran 236 San Diego, CA | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing Work in bilateral breathing no matter what!! It may not be the most comfortable thing at first, but to avoid shoulder problems and many other problems, the best thing you can do is bilateral breathe. I wrote an article on that a while back. You can check it out at: www.triswimcoach.com/bilateralbreathing Cheers, Kevin |
| 2004-11-30 5:25 PM in reply to: #87728 |
Elite 3498 Chicago | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing Tri Swim Coach - 2004-11-30 12:14 PM Work in bilateral breathing no matter what!! It may not be the most comfortable thing at first, but to avoid shoulder problems and many other problems, the best thing you can do is bilateral breathe. I wrote an article on that a while back. You can check it out at: www.triswimcoach.com/bilateralbreathing Cheers, Kevin Hey Kevin, That's a great article. I love the last 3 points. I will definately incorporate the one sided breathing for 1 length then switch to the other side for the other length to make sure I get enough oxygen when I'm doing "fast" sets. That's the main reason I switched to one-sided breathing, now I can balance out my stroke without having my splits suffer. good stuff... |
| 2004-11-30 6:11 PM in reply to: #87438 |
| New user 166 Michigan | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing Deb_B - 2004-11-29 5:49 PM It is interesting that so few folks picked the left side. I am left handed - I wonder if it is related. Deb Hey Deb, I've been wondering about why so few people picked the left side, too. However, I am right handed, yet I breathe on the left side. So I wonder if there is any correlation between the two. Anyway, I am going to try bileteral breating when I go swimming tonight. |
| 2004-11-30 6:45 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Elite 3498 Chicago | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing I know for me I favor the right side not because I'm right handed but because years of holding the phone with my left shoulder has really caused limited rotation in my neck to the left...although ART has cleared up some of it... |
| 2004-11-30 7:42 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Master 1791 Raleigh, North Carolina | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing While uncomfortable to get used to at first...after a month or two of practice, I can't image doing anything but bilateral. You'll master it in no time Chris. |
| 2004-11-30 9:52 PM in reply to: #87388 |
| Member 28 Kerrville, TX | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing I tried breathing on both sides (a couple of weeks ago) and had a major problem. The next day, I woke up with a serious crick in my neck. Went to the chiropractor and he popped me back into place. Now, I'm scared to try again (the crick was very painful). I guess the left side breathing was so awkward that I turned to far and pulled my neck out. Guess I need to suck it up and try again (and try to turn my body and not my neck). Has this happend to anyone else? |
| 2004-11-30 9:55 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Member 37 Canberra, Australia | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing Also, as I find, my neck get a Crick if my muscles are tight. If you are due for a massage, or hell, get one anyway, try it within 1-2 days after. your neck will a lot more relaxed. And Yes, you should be beathing when your body is turned...not so much your neck. My 2c worth (or in AUD1.45c) |
| 2004-12-01 2:07 PM in reply to: #87388 |
Expert 751 Texarkana, TX | Subject: RE: Bilateral Breathing I breathe every other stroke, all the time. But as has been listed here, I breathe to the right going down the lane, and to the left coming back up the lane, so I spend equal practice time breathing on either side. Here's the funny thing. Breathing left, I average 17 strokes per 25 meters, and breathing right, I average 16 strokes per 25 meters. This is held true for virtually the entire 1800 meter swim that I did last week. Also, I experienced in my Half in September that I swim straighter breathing right. Weird. |
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