In this article about breathing exercises after working out: Out of breath after a tough workout? That's understandable! Your breathing plays an important role before, during, and after exercising. By consciously controlling your breath, you can calm your breath and your entire system after working out. We’ll help you get started.
There are countless breathing exercises available. For example, there are breathing exercises to calm down, improve your focus, or regulate your emotions. In this article, we share why breathing exercises after working out are recommended and which breathing exercises are best to do after exercising.
Why do breathing exercises after working out?
During a workout, your body has to work harder. This creates a form of 'stress' for the body, triggering certain processes. Your body switches to a more action-oriented state. Your heart rate increases, your breathing quickens, and you sweat more. These processes are automatically regulated by the autonomic nervous system. Fortunately, this happens automatically because during exercise, you need your concentration for the workout. After a training session, your body needs to switch back to that relaxed state so that all the processes necessary for functioning in daily life can work optimally again. Just as your body automatically switches to a more action-oriented state, it can also automatically switch back to a more relaxed state. However, because we live in a society filled with stimuli, obligations, and external pressure, it can be more challenging for your system to switch back. Previously, we shared that cooling down exercises can help with this. Additionally, by consciously breathing, you signal your nervous system that it is safe to relax. With breathing exercises after working out, you can support your body to continue functioning optimally.
Three breathing exercises after working out
Finished a tough workout? These three breathing exercises after exercising help you to calm down, focus, and experience connection.
1. The 4-7-8 breathing
The 4-7-8 breathing immediately promotes relaxation. The counting indicates the breathing pace. You inhale for 4 counts, hold your breath for 7 counts, and exhale for 8 counts. The pause between inhalation and exhalation helps normalize your blood pressure and heart rate. By extending your exhalation, your system can relax. With this combination, you signal your nervous system that it is safe, allowing you to calm down. This makes this technique not only suitable for bedtime, but also a great breathing exercise to do after working out.
2. The box breathing
The box breathing is a popular breathing technique to bring your system back into balance. You inhale for 4 counts, hold for 4 counts, exhale for 4 counts, and hold again for 4 counts. Because the inhalation, pause, and exhalation all have the same tempo, your system can regain balance. This brings the focus back to yourself.
3. The 3-3 connected breathing
A workout creates tension and stress for your system. We often tend to hold our breath when we experience tension. During a training session, you might also consciously hold your breath. By breathing connectedly, you break through stored tension. You eliminate the pause between inhalation and exhalation, allowing your breath and energy to flow more freely.
Exercising at Daadkracht
In our personal lifestyle studios in Overveen & Heemstede, we focus on both effort and relaxation. We tailor our training based on your lifestyle circumstances. We often conclude a training session with breathing exercises for after the workout. Additionally, we collaborate with breath coach Elsa Sophie, who can guide you in opening your breathing system, allowing you to break through stored tension, unprocessed emotions, and limiting patterns with the help of breathwork.
