I saw someone today breathing every 4 strokes, so it took her 4 or 5 breathings to finish the length. Thought it interesting to know the breathing styles of the people here, and maybe the advantages of each.
Edit: Replace "breath" by "breathe" in the title.
Parents
Former Member
I wonder in what year or decade the bilateral breathing was instituted? I breathe to the left (which would be everyone's side unless you are left handed) as that was the way I learned. I can turn my head to the right if I want to, but to take a breath will cause me to sink and will break my rhythm. We all favor one side as that is the way we were made. I wonder if the 100 free meter sprinter who is taking one or two breaths is switching sides? We can't change the fixed idea that we breathe because we need oxygen or "air", but we really breathe because our bodies build up C02 in our blood stream and that is what primarily drives us to breathe, to get rid of the carbon dioxide, and thus keep our "buffering" systems working. Notice that as you swim faster or after some time you need to breathe more often, that is a consequence of the C02 buildup. At a cellular level the oxygen for a sprint is spent pretty fast, but there is enough circulating in your blood to keep you going. The fact is that when breathing you also breathe in oxygen, but if you didn't breathe you could go on swimming longer, if not for the trigger mechanisms that rely on C02 for its trigger (hummm). There is some percentage of oxygen participation in breathing drive, but too complicated to be discussed here. There are also experiences where breathing pure oxygen before taking a long dive will make you go longer, but that is empyrical and not quite understood. I am still trying to figure out why you can do a few sets of 25s without breathing but progressively it gets more difficult...got to read more...billy fanstone
I wonder in what year or decade the bilateral breathing was instituted? I breathe to the left (which would be everyone's side unless you are left handed) as that was the way I learned. I can turn my head to the right if I want to, but to take a breath will cause me to sink and will break my rhythm. We all favor one side as that is the way we were made. I wonder if the 100 free meter sprinter who is taking one or two breaths is switching sides? We can't change the fixed idea that we breathe because we need oxygen or "air", but we really breathe because our bodies build up C02 in our blood stream and that is what primarily drives us to breathe, to get rid of the carbon dioxide, and thus keep our "buffering" systems working. Notice that as you swim faster or after some time you need to breathe more often, that is a consequence of the C02 buildup. At a cellular level the oxygen for a sprint is spent pretty fast, but there is enough circulating in your blood to keep you going. The fact is that when breathing you also breathe in oxygen, but if you didn't breathe you could go on swimming longer, if not for the trigger mechanisms that rely on C02 for its trigger (hummm). There is some percentage of oxygen participation in breathing drive, but too complicated to be discussed here. There are also experiences where breathing pure oxygen before taking a long dive will make you go longer, but that is empyrical and not quite understood. I am still trying to figure out why you can do a few sets of 25s without breathing but progressively it gets more difficult...got to read more...billy fanstone
