I am often asked to give some practical suggestions to reduce stress and anxiety produced by strenuous workouts, the desire to excel or expectations of the sporting environment and family. I will do it in this blog and others that will follow and I want to begin from an action that every human being is continuously without interruption: breathe. In general, athletes do not know, how many other people, perform a deep breath and especially ignore the reasons why they should. First, it must be said that a deep abdominal breathing can afford both to reduce the level of tension that is proof at that time as well as can increase the level of activation.
To breathe you have to take the air from the nose, initially fills the lower part of the lungs, making sure that the diaphragm moves down and this is the reason why the abdomen is out. Subsequently, the air occupies the middle part of the lungs, thus the lower ribs and sternum are raised; the thorax expands immediately after, when the air invades also the upper part of the lungs. Of course, there are not three distinct phases but a single rhythmic motion breathing. Hold the air for a few seconds in order to allow the lungs to absorb oxygen that you have just introduced. Finally, take the air out gradually from the mouth. We can start from the execution of 3 deep breaths in order to arrive to make 7/8. This exercise should be carried out during the warm-up and when you do the stretching. The purpose is to get used to perform properly and increasingly automated this exercise. It should be recalled that a breath of this type must have a duration of about 20 seconds, for which it will make 3 breaths in about 1 minute. If you want to improve the state of mental calm while breathing can mentally repeat the words as “calm … relaxed” or you can think of past experiences where it was quiet. Of course I’m talking about exercises to do for now in training in order to increase the self-control.
On the other hand you will have a higher activation state of mind if you are breathing as it has now been described, but with a little variation. When you have completed the inhalation phase you must hold the air inside and with open arms must bend forearms for 5 times ( corresponding to 5 seconds), and only at the end of it phase of exhalation start. In this way the movement of the arms acts as a pump that pushes with more rapidity oxygen throughout the body and at the end of a few breaths you will perceive clearly a greater sense of mental activation.
