Breathing Workout

A great exercise session will get you really high, right? The adrenaline pumping, the glistening sweat - proof of the hard work you just did. You must feel mighty proud of that. And why not. Now what if I told you that a breathing workout is just as important when you are following exercise programs? Have you ever thought about that? Most of us breathe, without even realizing that we are doing it. One does not need to consciously breathe. It just happens. And so most of us do not even think about it much. But that is exactly what you should not be doing. It is so important that one concentrates on their breathing techniques when they are exercising. A breathing workout will help you increase the benefits of exercising manifold. Now who wouldn't want that?

Ultimate Breathing Routines

Like I said, breathing helps to increase the benefits that you get from exercising. If you do not breathe fully during your exercising routine, it makes the exercise unnecessarily more difficult. So also, less air taken in means a direct increase in the difficulty to burn the fat off. Why do that to yourself? Try some of the following breathing workouts and see for yourself the difference you feel when you breath fully, while being conscious of the way you are doing it and without. Don't believe me? Here are some workouts that you can try:

All Body Workout
Lie down on the ground and after relaxing for 4-5 seconds, take in a deep breath. Breathe through your nose and push the belly up while inhaling. To watch your belly rise, stick your chin on to your chest. Once you have a breathed in fully, hold the air in as long as you possibly can.

This will stretch out your lungs and let more air in. If you cannot hold the air in for more than a few seconds, keep practicing and you will the see the difference soon enough.

Workout for Thighs
During squatting, inhale when you come to the squatting position. And exhale when you go up. Make sure that you take in enough air to last you in one repetition. Taking in multiple breaths during one repetition can lead to dizziness.

When doing the leg press inhale, inhale as the knees come down to the chest and exhale when you push out the weight. During leg extensions, inhale when you raise your legs to the 90 degree position and then let out the air when you get them straight and squeeze the quads.

The hamstring curl exercise will entail that you inhale when you extend the legs and stretch out your hamstrings and exhale when you pull the weight towards them.

Workout for the Chest
When doing a chest press, inhale as you bring the weight down. You should be able to feel a great stretch in the pectorals and have a full breath of air. When you push the weight up, squeeze the chest muscles and exhale the breathe just as you reach the end of your push.

When you are doing an exercise that involves the use of dumbbells, inhale when you bring the weight down. This will allow you to feel a stretch in the chest muscles. While exhaling, push the dumbbells to the central position. When the dumbbell is at the top, make sure that you have completely exhaled and the muscles are tightly squeezed. During push-ups, inhale when you come towards the ground and exhale as you go up.

Workout for Abdominal Muscles
Breathing right and fully during ab exercises is very very important because it helps in contracting the muscles well. During crunches or any other abdominal exercise, take in a deep breath when you lower your body onto the ground and exhale when you crunch and squeeze the abs.

Workout for the Back
During dead-lifts, breathe in deep when you lower the weight to the ground. When at the bottom, complete your breath and start to let off the air as you lift the weight and squeeze the muscles in the lower back.

When doing wide grip chins, inhale as you take your body into the hanging position. Exhale when you pull up to the bar and contract the back muscles. Exhale completely at the top.

Workout for Shoulders
When doing side lateral raises, inhale when you lower the weights to your sides. Then while bringing the weights to a position that is parallel to your shoulders, exhale fully.

When doing Dumbbell shoulder presses, inhale as you bring the dumbbells down and exhale when you push up.

Workout for Biceps and Triceps
When doing some bicep exercises or tricep exercises, one needs to use good breathing exercises. Here's how:

The barbell bicep curl involves you to inhale when the barbell is taken down to the lower body. Exhale fully when you bring the weight up, squeezing at the top of the movement.

In tricep cable extensions, inhale when the arms bend and the weight rises. Now exhale as you push the weight down to the lower body.

Try some of these breathing workout sessions the next time you exercise. Record how you feel, whether you feel tired out, or sagged out of energy. Chances are that the breathing will help you to carry out the same exercise with much more added zeal and greater results! All the best!