Improve your Breathing… and Performance.
Near the close of the 19th Century, Russian Physiologist Verigo and Dutch Scientist Bohr independently discovered that without CO2, oxygen remains bound to hemoglobin, unreleased and incapable of being utilized by our tissues.
As a result there is an oxygen deficiency in tissues such as our brain, kidneys and heart, as well as a significant increase in our blood pressure.
Over-Breathing: The Hyperventilation Feedback Loop
Russian and former Soviet research, by men like Dr. V. Frolov, Dr. K. Buteyko and Prof. R. Strelkov (Frolov, Endogenous Breathing) surmised that deep breathing serves as the root cause of many illnesses. Deep-breathers suffer from O2 starvation and so they “over-breathe” which begins the cycle called the Hyperventilation Feedback Loop.
Over-Breathing:
Notice how a person holding his breath becomes increasingly hyperactive. Over time the level of CO2 increases dramatically causing the rapid consumption of O2.
This hyperactivity continues until syncope (unconsciousness) a method used in martial arts to expedite strangulation techniques. The cause of O2 deficiency is not due to the lack of O2 presence, but by the lack of CO2 retention.
Hypoxia vs. Hypercapnia
Over-breathing causes O2 deficiency. If we breathe too much, we have less O2 in our body.
Two Methods Of Breathing Developed From This Understanding:
Hypoxic (or lowered oxygen count)
Hypercapnic (or saturated with carbonic gas) breathing
Dr. Vladimir Frolov (Endogenous Respiration) concluded from his research that both methods intend the same goal but achieve it through different means:
Buteyko achieved positive results raising the concentration of carbonic gas in the lungs. Strelkov, in turn, obtained the identical result by lowering the oxygen content in the lungs.
The paradox solves itself if we compare oxygen concentrations in both methods. It turned out that what united them was an approximately identical hypoxia regime (lower oxygen content).
Power vs. Performance
For general training, the conventional method of breathing entails the Power Breathing Technique: This hypoxic method was researched by a Russian scientist Professor R. Strelkov and was propagated by Pavel Tsatsouline in the West. Power increases immediately, but fine and complex motor skills such as in any physical activity suffer.
“With a different method, the results come and eventually exceed those of Power pundits, without imperiling your health. However, to do this, you need to allow your breathing to be produced by your structure and movement.”
Urgency demands immediate performance increases, such as with military and law enforcement personnel. Some people choose immediate results over longevity due to the short career window of professional sports. When you do, you choose to results by shaving a few minutes off the end of your life.
This technique – Restorative Breathing Technique: A hypercapnic method was researched by Russian scientist Dr. K. Buteyko, modified by Russian coach Alexander Retuinskih, Distinguished Coach of Russia (the highest award in physical culture in Russia), and expanded through research and implementation by our-self through our practice with patients, over the past 10 years.
The 6 Developmental Levels Of Improving Restorative Breathing
- 1 & 2. On compression, allow a passive exhale; on expansion, allow a passive inhale. Notice wrote “allow” not create. This is not an ACTIVE breath. We explain how to implement this in exercise in our training session. As you bend over, a natural compression forces the air out of your lungs. As you stand back straight, the air naturally sucks back into your lungs as your thoracic cavity opens.
- 3 & 4. Exhale actively on effort; inhale passively when relaxing from the effort. Do not create intra-cerebral or intra-abdominal back pressure. No red faces! You should be able to carry on a conversation while using Restorative Breathing.
- 5. Perform fine & complex motor skills at the end of the exhalation, before inhalation. This is called the “Control Pause” – the moment when your body is at the most complete rest possible (from a mechanical perspective. Ultimately, the Control Pause also happens in between heart beats.)
- 6. Extend the Control Pause in order to maximize oxygen delivery and ability to function under stress, especially fine and complex motor skills. With Restorative Breathing , your most skilled goals occur at the end of the exhale. This is when your Body-Flow is most in sync with the environment, like an archer shooting an arrow, a painter placing brush to canvas, or a martial artist letting fly a fist. Since activity occurs at the end of an exhalation, you perform with optimal function.
Responsibly incorporate all technical points: proper movement nuances, proper structural alignment, and proper breathing. Dr. Vladimir Frolov (Endogenous Respiration) writes that, the key to understanding what health is lies with longevity.
YOU decide which method you use. Your body is your God-given gift. Treat it as you would treat your Church. Act responsibly with your health. You are responsible.
Restorative Breathing balances health and performance, which should be your default setting. You’ll feel better, you’ll tap into your Body-Flow, and eventually you’ll exceed in results as well as in age, your breath-holding counter-parts.
Increasing blood circulation, switching blood volume to large muscles (decreasing digital dexterity), significantly diminishes and prohibits accuracy and precision. Restorative Breathing is actually quite simple, though it becomes sophisticated in application without your intentional use since it causes a change in respiratory efficiency. Within 2-3 months of consistent practice, you will forever improve the efficiency of your breathing and as a result your health!
One to one coaching in our session is a great way to get the personalized guidance you are looking for.
! ONLY TEXT !