Breathing Patterns

[Felt_Rider]

I noticed one thing as a newbie trying to improve that my breathing is erratic because I have not yet learned what patterns (if any) are necessary depending on sprinting or climbing. From a weight training background I know how to control my breathing for efficiency and gained strength, but on the bike I seem to be clueless.

It almost feels abnormal to to be breathing irregular to the pedal stroke, but it also seems unreasonable to be breathing as rapid as a spinning stroke.

Is there any synchronicity to breathing to pedaling or different excertion levels?

I kind of looked around on the web for information, but I thought I would pose the question here about breathing patterns or links to articles.

 

[Felt_Rider]

I've done some web research, but I have not found much on the subject.
It does seem that there is a correlation of breathing to the downward pedal stroke.

http://www.cptips.com/respmus.htm

http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0366.htm

The following link outlines what I was trying to ask.

How untrained breathing utilizes more energy than trained breathing and my question is how do you train breathing to become more efficient?


http://www.arniebakercycling.com/handouts/ht_work_of_breathing.htm

 

[GIFF07]

I think you may have found all the info thats out there but I am not a doctor and dont have a lot of resources so I can just speak from personal experiance, most of the time when I am riding hard I try to exhale as much air that I can with each breath and don't worry about the inhale. I have never really paid attention to a breathing pattern in relation to my pedal stroke because I could be going easy and doing 100+ rpms or going real hard and doing 40-50 rpms. I think breathing should just be trying to get as much air in and out of your body as needed to keep your body out of oxygen debt.

I think that some things that work well for weight lifting and body building might not work well for bicycling.

 

[Woofer]

Do a search on entrainment - I believe this is the common term for breathing in rhythm with exercise rhythm..

http://www.ms-se.com/pt/re/msse/abstract.00005768-199802000-00011.htm;jsessionid=Cn92BMcC3EfbW7K1Jn55dLT2exGn2PSfW64J6M1243uIcNCu2R86!-1778183981!-949856031!9001!-1


From what I remember, there is enough oxygen in a normal persons intake of air to sustain much more than the maximum work output possible by that person - this is not the limiter in a healthy person for aerobic exercise.

 

[Felt_Rider]

Thanks for the feedback.

I was certainly having trouble finding the right words for my original question.

I have found other articles and studies related to other types of sports, such as, rowing that indicate a breathing rhythm to become more efficient.

I suppose as conditioning improves through interval training the breathing rythm is somewhat unconscious and more natural, but I have read a couple of statements that a breathing rythm can be trained as well, but not much information stating how to do this.

I know that interval training on running stairs is different than interval training on the bike. I can recover more quickly and my breathing rythm is synchronized with each step, exhaling as I take an upward step. As I rest between intervals my breathing still has a rythm.

On the bike (actual road riding - not on a trainer) once I end the interval my breathing is irregular and uncontrolled. I have trouble regaining a regular pattern. One breath might be deep and the next short and I am expending more effort trying to establish a regular breathing pattern again.

I guess this will work itself out as I improve condition and do more interval training out on the road.

 

[in.10.city]

Thanks for the feedback.

I was certainly having trouble finding the right words for my original question.

I have found other articles and studies related to other types of sports, such as, rowing that indicate a breathing rhythm to become more efficient.

I suppose as conditioning improves through interval training the breathing rythm is somewhat unconscious and more natural, but I have read a couple of statements that a breathing rythm can be trained as well, but not much information stating how to do this.

I know that interval training on running stairs is different than interval training on the bike. I can recover more quickly and my breathing rythm is synchronized with each step, exhaling as I take an upward step. As I rest between intervals my breathing still has a rythm.

On the bike (actual road riding - not on a trainer) once I end the interval my breathing is irregular and uncontrolled. I have trouble regaining a regular pattern. One breath might be deep and the next short and I am expending more effort trying to establish a regular breathing pattern again.

I guess this will work itself out as I improve condition and do more interval training out on the road.

Some of the difference you are experiencing between running stairs and interval training on the bike could be due to the fact that when you are standing you are able to open your chest and diaphram up to take full breaths and to belly breathe. When you are on a bike, you may be positioned in a hunched back or bent manner - as opposed to a flat back - that restricts your breathing. Keeping a flat back (it helps to have flexible hams, glutes, and hip flexors also) allows you to open your chest and to belly breathe.

 

[Felt_Rider]

Some of the difference you are experiencing between running stairs and interval training on the bike could be due to the fact that when you are standing you are able to open your chest and diaphram up to take full breaths and to belly breathe. When you are on a bike, you may be positioned in a hunched back or bent manner - as opposed to a flat back - that restricts your breathing. Keeping a flat back (it helps to have flexible hams, glutes, and hip flexors also) allows you to open your chest and to belly breathe.

You are right. Thanks!!!
I have read to keep the hands wide on the bars for breathing, but for some reason I wasn't adding it all up with being bent over causing more restriction.

Makes perfect sense that interval training running stairs or running sprints would be easier to recover than interval training on the bike. I guess I need to be more patient on the recovering time between intervals while conditioning improves. Patience is not one of my better attributes.