Here's what occurred when I transitioned to solely nasal breathing during a 5K run.

 

As a habitual mouth breather, I was oblivious to the negative effects it had on my health until I was enlightened by my friends and health experts. Despite hearing about the benefits of nasal breathing, I continued with my old ways until I realized the importance of physical fitness and decided to give it a try. To ensure I was doing it right, I consulted with Patrick McKeown, an International Breath Training Coach and the founder of Oxygen Advantage, who taught me the fundamentals of nasal breathing and how it could enhance my running performance. Curious about its impact, I put it to the test during a 5K run and here's what I discovered.

How can nasal breathing improve running?

To begin with, nasal breathing can be practiced consistently, and it is actually recommended to try it while resting and sleeping in order to fully experience the health benefits and allow your body to become accustomed to it before attempting it during physical exercise, when breathlessness is more likely to occur. According to Mckeown, each time you switch from breathing through your mouth to breathing through your nose, you will feel a heightened sensation of air hunger, indicating an increase in carbon dioxide levels in your blood. Why is this important? Carbon dioxide is the main trigger for breathing, and your tolerance to it will determine the extent of breathlessness you experience during physical activity. 

"When you switch to nasal breathing during physical exercise, particularly during training, you expose your body to higher levels of carbon dioxide, and over time, your body adapts to a greater tolerance of carbon dioxide," explains McKeown. "As your tolerance improves, your ability to engage in physical exercise with less ventilation increases." It is also worth noting that breathing through the nose creates resistance, which adds a training load to your breathing. Therefore, by nasal breathing during training, you not only increase carbon dioxide levels in your blood, but also provide an additional load to your diaphragm, helping to strengthen it. As McKeown points out, "With a stronger and more efficient diaphragm, you experience less breathlessness during physical exercise. Ultimately, this is about training your body to achieve more with less effort." It may sound simple when put that way, but can you complete a 5K race solely by breathing through your nose? Keep reading to find out.

Here's what occurred when I made the switch to exclusively nasal breathing during a 5K run. Prior to delving into my personal encounter, it is important to acknowledge that breathing is a highly individualized process, and certain individuals may have breathing disorders. Consequently, nasal breathing may not be suitable for everyone.

If you are contemplating the idea of solely breathing through your nose, it is advisable to consult a doctor or medical expert who can provide the most appropriate guidance regarding whether it is suitable for you to explore this breathing technique.

IT WAS NO WALK IN THE PARK

I made an effort to normalize my nasal breathing by reminding myself to do so during various activities such as working at my desk, cooking, walking to the shop, and even when trying to fall asleep. However, after a few breaths, it didn't feel natural and I struggled to maintain it. Attempting to continue nasal breathing while running without resorting to mouth breathing was quite challenging, and I could definitely feel the difficulty.

I wish I could say that I was feeling the benefits of nasal breathing in a positive way, but honestly, I was struggling. I had to constantly motivate myself to persevere with nasal breathing, but I did have to resort to occasional mouth breathing to keep going.

To me, it felt similar to the sensation of holding your breath and swimming underwater from one end of a pool to the other. I hope I'm not the only one who finds this thrilling when swimming.

Although I didn't feel particularly inspired to run like this all the time, I also recognized that it would be lazy of me to not enjoy a 5K run simply because nasal breathing felt unnatural. Especially considering that there is research suggesting that nasal breathing can enhance running performance.

For instance, a study involved 10 runners who were asked to run on a treadmill in two separate sessions: one session involved nose breathing, while the other involved mouth breathing. Throughout each session, researchers monitored respiratory indicators such as oxygen consumption, respiratory rate, and carbon dioxide production.

The findings revealed that the runners obtained an equivalent amount of oxygen whether they were breathing through their nose or mouth. However, their respiratory rate, or the number of breaths per minute, was lower during nose breathing. This suggests that nasal breathing required less effort to achieve the same oxygen intake, which could potentially enhance running performance.

IT MADE MY 5K TIME SLOWER

After completing a 5K run while breathing through my mouth, I decided to challenge myself and run another 5K only breathing through my nose. I made sure to wear the same gear for both runs to eliminate any external factors that could affect the results. Despite maintaining the same pace on both runs, I found that my nasal breathing run was one minute and 13 seconds slower, which was disappointing. However, I am still optimistic about the benefits of nasal breathing and will continue to practice it. As McKeown explained, nasal breathing is a way to train the body to do more with less, and it can be a natural way to breathe during physical exercise once the body has adapted. I will report back on my progress in the future.