Exhaling during bilateral breathing

Try to slowly exhale throughout your stroke while keeping your face looking straight down. Don't just exahle at the end. Take your inhale after your hand has been fully extended after entry on the third stroke. Try to turn your head so your mouth is just above the surface when inhaling.

Ditto...though I dont know if I would agree with the head straight down...too much water on your shoulders slowing you down. Tilt upward just slightly at about a 45 degree angle. Kel,

I was coached to exhale the whole time I'm not inhaling. So on one sided breathing, I's exhale a bit faster than I would on bilateral (every 3rd stroke). I was told to not hold my breath at all. There was a reason for it, but i forget what it is. I think it has something to do with making sure as much air as possible is expelled before you have to breathe in, and maximizing the amount of air you can get. If you hold your breath, it interferes, somehow, If I remember correctly.

Connie, I was taught to exhale while my head was in the water as well. What I was told is that when you are exhaling in the water you're air should all be out by the time you are going to breathe again to make sure your head takes as little time as possible to breathe and get it back down. IF that makes sense. Kel,

I think I read somewhere that holding your breath causes a build up of CO2, which in turn gives that my-lungs-are about-to-burst feeling. I'm working on (trying to learn) exhaling slowly enough that I don't run out of air to exhale from flags, through flip turn, to second stroke after I surface (and still keep the water out of my nose while I flip) any suggestions?

I would say to try to breathe in a normal fashion. This helps to keep you relaxed and helps to keep the muscles relaxed as you stroke. So, don't hold your breath or gulp wildly when breathing, just breathe out steadily and exhale during turning the head to breathe and finish that exhale AS your mouth clears the water. This stops you accidentally swallowing water and triggers a more efficient intake of breath. Other tips are: 1- When you breathe in a good check of your head position is that ' one goggle is underwater while the other is above the water. This is a check to see that your head is not being lifted up off its longitudinal axis. 2-Look with your eyes to the side of the pool and a few feet in front of you. This keeps your head in a neutral position. If you look backwards it means that you are moving your head off it's central longitudinal axis. 3- Feel that you pivot around your 'temple' on your head as you return your face to the water. This corrects a tendency to DROP your head too far into the water. Practicing relaxed breathing as you swim helps a lot in the longer events. Hope it helps !

Kelli, Yeap! That sounds almost identical to what I was told :)

Thanks for that advise everyone.It is most appreciated.Now all I have to do is put it into practice.

"Pivot around your temple" is a confusing phrase, I should explain what I mean. This was taught to me by Steven Rojka, at a swim clinic in Vancouver a few years ago. He noticed that I was 'dropping' my head as I returned it to the water after inhaling. My head would fall too low in the water and i would then have to lift it up to the neutral position. The corrective practice was for me to concentrate on my 'temples' and try, when turning the head up to breath and then back into the water, not to allow the temples to raise up or drop down. Focusing on this worked immediately and once in a while that old stroke flaw will come back and I found that this "focus point"helps to eliminate it. I am looking for a phrase that is clearer in describing this, it is not really a "pivot", any ideas ?

Gareth- I can't picture what you mean when you write in your item #3: "pivot around your temple on your head." Could you explain this a bit further? Your other two items are clear and right on. Thanks.