A revolutionary way to breathe can help you run better and sidestep injury

Have you wondered how to take your running to the next level? Trying out revolutionary running breathing techniques could help. Changing the way you breathe while running might seem like a minor tweak, but it can really make an impact on your training. Here’s how.   How can breathing impact your injury rates?   Most people use 2-2 running breathing techniques. This means they breathe in over 2 strides and out over 2 strides. This causes the exhalation to always coincide with the foot strike of one foot. When you breathe out, your chest muscles expand into their weakest position. When this expansion coincides with the force of impact of striding, you can leave your core relatively unsupported. When this happens repeatedly over time, you may develop an injury on one side of your body.   How can you change your breathing pattern to reduce injury?   If you implement a running breathing technique that alternates your exhalation as opposite feet strike the ground, you distribute the unsupported force evenly across both sides of the body. This reduces the uneven demands on just one set of joints. It’s a good idea to practice this before taking it out on the road to get your head around it.   Lie on the floor with your knees bent and feet flat. Breathe deeply from your diaphragm rather than your upper chest. Breathe in for a count of 3, then out for 2. Your inhale will be one count longer than your exhale. When you are comfortable with this, you can tap your feet on the floor in time. You’ll notice that your exhalation will alternate between each foot.   Trial the 3:2 breathing pattern on your next easy run and see how it feels. If you want to do speed work or want to run hills, you might need to change your breathing pattern to the faster cadence of 2:1, in order to give your body more oxygen to meet the demand. This shortened cadence will still maintain the alternate foot strike distribution.   It may take some getting used to, but you may notice a reduction in injury rates overall.   About Enertor Advanced Technology Insoles – Enertor insoles are designed to prevent a number of common running injuries and provide more comfort. Designed by leading podiatrists to reduce your risk of injury, the unique design features support your foot throughout training. Enertor insoles are enhanced by D3O impact protection technology, which means they can provide more shock absorption than any other insole. Our expertise, combined with the patented D3O shock absorption technology, enables Enertor to deliver the most advanced injury prevention insoles on the market today. Enertor insoles are available to buy from our online shop Whilst Enertor has over 18 years Orthotics experience, our blog content is provided for informational purposes only and it is not a substitute for your own doctor’s medical advice. Enertor advises anyone with an injury to seek their own medical advice – and do not make any health or medical related decisions based solely on information found on this site.