Help Please - I'm so frustrated with breathing

[WFEGb]

Hello flowersnapper,

I realised when I do stand up, I am really ready for immediate inhale, so I assume this means I have exhaled fully? Perhaps I'm going too far on 1 breathe?

So let's explore further where tension sneaks in...
- Do you exhale forceless up to the last short "airspit" out?
- If so, there must sneak tension in while inhaling, not enough? Tension in your breast? Too short inhale?
- How about the checklist, while inhaling?
- Have attention to your interrupted breathing. When and where in your body do you feel relaxation happens?

Bye the way I'm really impressed by novaswimmer who can swim continuously for nearly an hour. Something I can only dream of at present.

... dreams may become true! (With TI not so rare...)

I'd be quite happy to get to the other end using continuous breathing in a relaxed manner. Don't mind having nice rest in between laps, as I'm sure like riding a bike, once you have the technique, distance will follow.

You're very right here... And I'm sure the other pooledge is closer than you'll realize at moment.

Best regards,
Werner

[flowersnapper]

I feel really relaxed all through first three strokes, and first breath.

Then i can tell although i am exhaling on next three strokes air is getting in shorter supply, I just about get one more breath in and 1 stroke, then absolutely have to stand.

I think you have hit the nail on the head, I'm not inhaling ENOUGH.

How do I fix this?

All help gratefully received

Kind Regards

Chris

[novaswimmer]

Originally Posted by WFEGb

Hello novaswimmer,

think you're very right with changing sides lapwise, even Terry has recommended. But changing sides (no matter what intervals) is important for long-term. So we should allow for from the beginning.

Your swims are fairly long. Did you experiment with other patterns, as 2-2-2-3... or 2-2-3... or changing sides in lap's mid? Breathing with various patterns may have positive repercussions to drag reduce and over all Relaxation.

Best regards,
Werner

Yes, I also try to throw in an 'every 3' among my 2's, when I can. But I'm most comfortable with '2s', especially for longer swims and when I tire.

[novaswimmer]

Originally Posted by flowersnapper

I feel really relaxed all through first three strokes, and first breath.

I think you have hit the nail on the head, I'm not inhaling ENOUGH.

I don't think you are breathing OFTEN enough. Try breathing every other stroke for a while. Practice, practice. Eventually you should reach an equilibrium. Slow your stroke if you need to. Try to breathe as often as you would in breaststroke.

And after your technique, efficiency and balance increase (which you should never fail to work on!), throw in a breath after 3 strokes, go back to breathing every 2 strokes. Over time, add more '3-stroke' breathing intervals. Practicing this 'mix up' should give you the skills to breathe whenever you need to.

Note that I said 'need' to. You breathe when you HAVE to, and not according to some predefined pattern. And your particular breathing pattern will depend on whether you are seasoned pro, or beginner, sinker or floater, sprinter or leisure swimmer.

You just need to anticipate when you would reach the point of 'panic' and try to breathe before that point sets in. After your inhale, you should feel relaxation for a while, not panic. In fact, you should still feel ease as you are reaching for air. I think this just takes a lot of practice for people who are learning to swim later in life.

[WFEGb]

Hello flowersnapper,

some good points from novaswimmer, worth to give them some time to try.

But if you feel you didn't get enough air in, I'm sure there is some Tension. If no tension in all points of the "checklist" it seems you build tension in your breast causing you not to inhale enough. Find it and find how to relax it.

What happens if just swim some strokes until you find the first feeling, you should take a breathe next time? What happens, if you swim the same count of strokes and take a breath at second, fourth...? Do you find some more tension when breathing? Where?

Best regards,
Werner

[flowersnapper]

Oh thanks to you all so much.

Yesterday major achievement (for me). Decided to breath every 2 strokes instead of three , as you suggested. Pretty slowly and stay relaxed as I could. Focus, focus , focus.

Achieved full length, I was so chuffed and excited, I just wanted to shout to everyone in the pool - I've done it. Must have been grinning like a cheshire cat.

I was then nervous about trying another just in case I couldn't do it again, but managed another ten after that. So thanks everyone so much. I can not consolidate what I've learned and eventually work towards bilateral in good time.

I can't tell you what it means to finally have succeeded, after so long.

Thanks again

Chris

[WFEGb]

Hello flowersnapper,

I can't tell you what it means to finally have succeeded, after so long.

Think most of us know similar things and we are pleased with you... This is one of the baits to swim more...

Most important point seems, you regained your joy :-)

Go on with your mindful work and enjoy your way!

Best regards,
Werner

[CoachBobM]

Originally Posted by flowersnapper

Oh thanks to you all so much.

Yesterday major achievement (for me). Decided to breath every 2 strokes instead of three , as you suggested. Pretty slowly and stay relaxed as I could. Focus, focus , focus.

Achieved full length, I was so chuffed and excited, I just wanted to shout to everyone in the pool - I've done it. Must have been grinning like a cheshire cat.

I was then nervous about trying another just in case I couldn't do it again, but managed another ten after that. So thanks everyone so much. I can not consolidate what I've learned and eventually work towards bilateral in good time.

I can't tell you what it means to finally have succeeded, after so long.

Thanks again

Chris

Congratulations!


Bob

Originally Posted by WFEGb

Hello Chris,

Andy's metaphor once was to think about breathing as a bellow. You'll have to find where/when tension sneaks in. It might be still in your first two breaths. I'd suggest the checklist:

- Is your neck relaxed and aligned with your spine?
- Do you have the feeling your head is just floating?
- Does the relaxation hold, while you're nodding/turning your head?
- Is your leading hand/arm relaxed from deepest up fingers-wrist-elbow-shoulder?
- Does your leading hand stay relaxed and fixed on it's wide rail?
- Is your core stable with enough relaxation to breathe unhindered?
- Are your legs aligned with spine and relaxed?
- Did you try inhaling down to your stomach... and will you let this deep air out again by itself (relaxed)?

You also may try in shallow water: Take two strokes and exhale in your usua way. Hold the rest air and stand up. If you can let out some air just by relaxing without pressing, you didn't exhale enough, because there has been some tension left...

My wife likes to think breathing as 6/8: 2-outflow, 2-outlfow, 1-rest air spit off, 1-inhale...

Hope there's something to study and find something out...

Best regards,
Werner

nice nice thank you

Originally Posted by flowersnapper

Oh thanks to you all so much.

Yesterday major achievement (for me). Decided to breath every 2 strokes instead of three , as you suggested. Pretty slowly and stay relaxed as I could. Focus, focus , focus.

Achieved full length, I was so chuffed and excited, I just wanted to shout to everyone in the pool - I've done it. Must have been grinning like a cheshire cat.

I was then nervous about trying another just in case I couldn't do it again, but managed another ten after that. So thanks everyone so much. I can not consolidate what I've learned and eventually work towards bilateral in good time.

I can't tell you what it means to finally have succeeded, after so long.

Thanks again

Chris

I've been browsing these forums for the past several weeks. This thread more than any other, helped me achieve what I think is my breakthrough.

Background - I am a runner and have done 50+ half marathons and a couple of full marathons over the last decade. So why wasn't I able to swim 25 yards without huffing and puffing ? I realized after reading these forums that a. I was going too fast, b. I wasn't inhaling enough air and c. I wasn't exhaling all the air when inside the water

This morning I used Werner's checklist as well as practiced my breathing right before entering the water every time. I would extend my left arm out in front of me and right arm to the side as I rotated my upper body slightly to the right. As I rotated, I'd let my head rotate to the right and swivel back to position along with my upper body. I would repeat this 7-10 times and to someone looking I'd have appeared like a ballerina. And then I'd enter the water. I'd take a breath for every stroke.

First up, I did this over 7 yards, then 10, 12, 15 and so on until I went 25 yards. And I wasn't tired or huffing and puffing at the end of it. Just like I had envisioned y'day as I was reading this thread. Just like I'd been wanting to do for over 20 years. I did 7 or 8 more reps of 25 yards non stop to confirm that I had indeed achieved my breakthrough. When I caught myself going too fast, rather than panic, I told myself to slow down and relax. I'd notice that my legs wouldn't kick as hard or my palms didn't look right when pulling the water but I decided to let go of these things and focus only on the breathing.

I plan to continue to reaffirm and increase my yardage. For the time being I'm doing unilateral breathing but hope to switch to bilateral and maybe even graduate to open swim so I can do a triathlon.

Preserving my knees and lengthening my running life was a big motivation. I needed a second activity and I'm glad I'm closer than ever to making this possible. Thanks to all of you for detailing your experiences, tips, suggestions etc. which helped me find my breakthrough.

DubDub