Local rider, Kevin Dewlen owner of Life-Wei, wants to help you live better by breathing better. As athletes, we assume we’re breathing correctly but just like your bike fit, diet and sleep habits, your breathing could probably be optimized. Kevin is certified as a breathing coach with XPT Performance Breathing a health regimen developed by pro surfer Laird Hamilton and his wife, professional volleyball player, Gabby Reece.
Michael Charboneau of Men’s Journal tried XPT and came away impressed, “I definitely appreciated the unique challenges I faced during my visit, and walked away with a new understanding of how breathing can be a powerful tool for increasing performance. I also really enjoyed the pool workouts, which are a kind of exercise I generally shy away from. But the biggest surprise came the next day, when I went out for an evening run. As I ran, I focused on inhaling deeply at a slower cadence than usual. I ended up tying my fastest time for that route and feeling way less fatigued than normal. So, yeah, I’m kinda hooked.”
Kevin provided the following article on XPT and Life-Wei.
Kevin Dewlen- Performance Breath Coach- LIFE-WEI.com
We all breathe, but are we breathing properly? Is our body performing as it should, or can we improve our health and athletic performance with just the way we breathe?
These are questions that I have explored personally and am passionate to share the results with others after learning the benefits and increasing my performance in various athletic ventures.
When we think of breath, are we just talking about the air we take into our lungs? No. Envision that oxygen we take in, and how we breathe it in affecting our body from our head to our toes. Know that 50% or more of children and adults breathe through their mouth, increasing stress, and over breathing which can be a host to dozens of problems in the body.
Now it’s a little more important isn’t it? Our breath should be driven from our diaphragm, filling our lungs, expanding our ribcage, massaging and moving a variety of muscles and organs within the region from our pelvic floor to the top of our head. This breath should be brought in through our nose during all levels of activity, while only needing to utilize breathing through our mouth at the highest level of intense activity. When we breathe through the nose, we filter and humidify the air we bring into our body, we also utilize the natural nitric oxide found in the nasal cavity, dilating our blood vessels, increasing our oxygen uptake in our blood, improving our para-sympathetic tone and reducing our recovery rate.
Sound complicated? It’s not. Imagine going out for a 5-, 10-, 15-mile training run or 1-2-hour ride, or 1-hour gym session breathing only through your nose. Could you do it? What does it mean? The nasal breath allows focus and flow, our ventilation perfusion (balance of air and blood that reaches the alveoli in our lungs) improves, removing the right amount of CO2 and bringing in the right amount of oxygen. We now finish our training, run, bike, or strength session in an optimal state that allows us to return to our resting HR and shift to a rested recovery state much quicker.
How? We start with the basics of breathing and build from there. Through a variety of exercises, we strengthen the breathing muscles, build the bodies tolerance to CO2, and improve mental alertness to find the body’s optimized performance.
Trust me, I was surprised to discover what I was missing, you will enjoy the results!
Contact Kevin through LIFE-WEI.com for questions on rates and schedule. Each client session is calibrated to an individual’s history, athletic level, and goals.
Be well, stay healthy, stay active! Cheers!
