breathe
brēT͟H/
verb
To take air into the lungs and then expel it, especially as a regular physiological process.
synonyms: inhale and exhale
Your breathing is one of the most important and integral parts to your survival. Yes, if you don’t or can’t continue to breathe you die, literally. But if you can’t regulate your air intake and control your breath then you will simply not perform at your best. It’s that simple.
Breathing can also regulate your stress levels, when it’s out of control you can literally panic or your stress and fear can put you in a downward spiral of failure BUT when you can control it you can do amazing things. Your mind can absolutely control your body and the breath is a pathway to that realization.
Warriors, like the Navy Seals, use a breathing technique called box-breathing to regulate their airflow and control their mind and body when they are called upon to perform.
This technique will help you cool down your body as well as find your mental-center.
Use the breath flow animation above from Quiet Kit when you need something to help you get going with Box Breathing.
Box Breathing How-to:
- Inhale for 4 seconds (as the circle expands)
- Hold your lungs full for 4 seconds (as the circle stays fully expanded)
- Exhale for 4 seconds (as the circle shrinks)
- Hold your lungs empty for 4 seconds (as the circle is contracted)
One of my mentors Mark Divine, creator of SealFit & former Navy Seal, teaches in-depth about the way we breathe and various breathing patterns you can use during a performance or generally to control your emotional state.
I can 100% attest to the validity of having “breath control.” I used it extensively before and during my Blackbelt test to calm myself down and find my mental-focus. Also during moments when I had to push through and get something done at a high level. It really does work and it has become an integral part of my personal arsenal as a martial artist.
