I have always breathed to the right only, but recently have started to try to learn how to breathe to my left. I am finding it much more difficult than I had anticipated. The main reason:
I am out of breath the whole time.
I feel like I am not getting the same quality of breath as I do when I breathe to the right. My breathing feels short and choppy. I also feel like I am lifting my head to breathe instead of breathing with my body roll.
Worse still, I am now dropping my right elbow and I am so out of breath the whole time, I can hardly concentrate on trying to keep it up.
On the positive side, my left elbow position has improved considerably (which is why I started down this road in the first place) and my kick is being forced to improve. (I have always had a crossover kick and for some reason or other when I breathe to my left, I don't do it).
Two weeks into the change now and it is definitely feeling more natural, however, I was hoping others who have tried this could give me some advice on what to watch out for and maybe give me some tips on how to make it feel more natural.
For the time being, I am also slower breathing to the left. On average, I am about 1-2 seconds slower per 50m than I am when I breathe to the right. But I expect that to improve and my ultimate aim is to be equally quick breathing to either side.
So technically, in my opinion, this practice isn’t really bi-lateral breathing. Yes, you are breathing on both sides, but only in different intervals/repeats/separate times. To me, bi-lateral breathing is breathing on both sides as you swim – i.e. rotate to the right, inhale, rotate back into the water(center), exhale, next stroke rotate to the left, inhale…etc. Bi-lateral breathing, as I described, can be really useful…especially for open water swimmers…but I also find it useful in the pool too. I think that learning it the way I described would probably be a more efficient process than being a right-sided breather, then learning to breathe left-sided independently, then working to combine it. The reason I say that is that instead of breathing every stroke (all left, or all right), you’re now breathing ever-other stroke. Consequently, there’s more time…a second or two…between inhalations. Not much but it can be noticeable depending on your intensity. Combining left and right together will also get you accustomed to that increased time between inhalations at the same time. Going all right, then all left…when you try to combine it you then have to deal with the increase time between inhalations. Try it the way I described. It may come easier.
Dan
For the time being, I am also slower breathing to the left. On average, I am about 1-2 seconds slower per 50m than I am when I breathe to the right. But I expect that to improve and my ultimate aim is to be equally quick breathing to either side.
So technically, in my opinion, this practice isn’t really bi-lateral breathing. Yes, you are breathing on both sides, but only in different intervals/repeats/separate times. To me, bi-lateral breathing is breathing on both sides as you swim – i.e. rotate to the right, inhale, rotate back into the water(center), exhale, next stroke rotate to the left, inhale…etc. Bi-lateral breathing, as I described, can be really useful…especially for open water swimmers…but I also find it useful in the pool too. I think that learning it the way I described would probably be a more efficient process than being a right-sided breather, then learning to breathe left-sided independently, then working to combine it. The reason I say that is that instead of breathing every stroke (all left, or all right), you’re now breathing ever-other stroke. Consequently, there’s more time…a second or two…between inhalations. Not much but it can be noticeable depending on your intensity. Combining left and right together will also get you accustomed to that increased time between inhalations at the same time. Going all right, then all left…when you try to combine it you then have to deal with the increase time between inhalations. Try it the way I described. It may come easier.
Dan
