Breathing is an essential part of life. You might think, then, that breathing properly should come naturally to everyone. Strangely, this is often not the case. Because computers, phones, and other devices can negatively affect posture, many modern people have begun to breathe incorrectly. While proper breathing can benefit you in many avenues of life, it is especially important as you take your beach cruiser ebike for a tough ride.
1. Breathing With Your Gut
People who spend time hunched over devices tend to breathe with their chests. This can seem natural to those who have spent their entire lives breathing this way, but it isn’t. Humans evolved in environments in which most of every day was spent standing and walking around with their stomachs held proudly outward.
Breathing with your gut can serve as the basis for other, more advanced breathing exercises. To breathe correctly, imagine that your stomach is a balloon. As you breathe in, your stomach — the balloon — should seem to inflate. As you breathe out, it should deflate as your chest relaxes in a wavelike motion. Doing this regularly can take some getting used to, but it can drastically increase the amount of oxygen your body absorbs.
2. Equal Inhale and Exhale
Breathing is critical for getting oxygen from your lungs to your muscles where your body can use it. Hyperventilating, however, can be an extremely inefficient way of accomplishing this.
If you are new to biking or simply new to focusing on your breath, a relatively simple exercise can help you slow your breathing for better overall efficiency. The next time you find yourself riding on flat ground, simply breathe in for three counts and breathe out for three counts. The goal is to get your breathing rate down to around ten breaths per minute. This exercise is great for casual beach rides, so grab your blue beach cruiser and give it a shot.
3. Pedal Breathing
Endurance runners and long-distance athletes are humans just like everyone else. So how do they endure the pain and misery of long-distance competition? They focus on their breathing and ignore the pain.
Since breathing the right amount is important for success in competition, athletes often focus their attention on counting their breaths, creating a kind of moving meditation. This can sound difficult, but it really isn’t. Try to settle into a medium pace, then count the length of your inhale. Lengthen your exhale so it is approximately twice as long as your exhale. Use your mouth to slow the speed of air leaving your lungs. For most people, a three-second to six-second ratio is about right.
There is more to breathing than meets the eye, and breathing properly while can take a little getting used to. If you feel uncomfortable trying breath techniques at first, try exercises while walking or jogging before transitioning to a bike. Of course, if efficiency is your goal, both your breath and your bike are important. As you practice at home, check the latest beach cruisers for sale online.
This is a guest post. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lifestyle For Men Magazine.
