Breathing / Mental activity

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MHunte
MHunte Posts: 149
in Fitness and Exercise
I would appreciate some insight on these two issues.

Breathing:

Is it more productive to anticipate upcoming moments of cardiovascular stress and begin to longer and deeper breaths of your own accord before your body begins to take deeper breaths on it's on? Does that help postone exhaustion or have any beneficial affect?


Or is it more productive to allow your body to breath at it's own rate and depth? Such as you run for 20 minutes and your still breathing shallow, it is stressful or beneficial to take longer deeper breaths even if your body isn't requiring it yet?

Should you take it upon yourself to increase your oxygen intake or allow your body to judge the amount of oxygen it needs in the manner of your breathing?

Mental activity:

I find that while running, increased mental activity such as paying attention to many different things or having in depth conversations brings a sense of fatigue (not based on the increased stress on your cardio from talking)

Is anyone aware of a link between increased mental activity and bodily fatigue during exercise or running?

Replies

  • MHunte
    MHunte Posts: 149
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    ..
  • MHunte
    MHunte Posts: 149
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    Bump for a reply.......
  • trlrnrgrl
    trlrnrgrl Posts: 80
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    I don't know about the breathing part of your question. But I can say that I usually prefer running alone because it wears me down to have to talk with someone else. For me, I think the quiet, meditative, internal aspect of running is what is so great for me and helps me feel happy and refreshed at the end of my run. When I run pushing my son in the jogging stroller and he wants to talk and have my attention the whole time, I find it makes me feel less refreshed. I don't know if that helps or answers part of what you're wondering about?
  • VeganInTraining
    VeganInTraining Posts: 1,321 Member
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    I'd say just let your body do the breathing...it knows what it's doing! I can see how you feel more fatigued with more mental activity....I bet that thinking so hard about what you're doing while you're running is exhausting ;) I don't know of any correlation specifically with running and thought but I do know that the mind and body are very intertwined, if your wearing your brain out you are probably gonna wear your body out
  • Fitness_4_Jess
    Fitness_4_Jess Posts: 55 Member
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    For me, when running, breathing is my mental activity. I will get "athlete's asthma" from time to time if I allow my body to take quick, shallow breaths. I don't try to take incredibly long breaths, but consistent sized breaths. I found when doing this I can go for a bit longer before my body gets mad at mad. Also, like a I said above, I make breathing my mental activity. I am still aware of what is going on around me, but it is nice to be thinking about the cadence of my breathing.
  • reedkaus
    reedkaus Posts: 250 Member
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    all i can think of is the conversation taking away from what you are trying to focus on. but when you're running and talking your not going to be able to get as much oxygen into your blood from your lungs because you're going to be expelling it trying to talk, so those deeps breaths might be harder to get. the talking might also disrupt your breathing in a way where you aren't able to take deep enough breaths, and it's the lack of air getting into your lungs, not the mental activity.
  • jennmoore3
    jennmoore3 Posts: 1,015 Member
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    I am having such a hard time with breathing and running at the same time. I get the side stitch. I try to breathe in for 2 steps and out for 2 steps. I have tried to let my body do it, and still side pain. I do find if I lip sink to the music I am listening to it stays away for a bit longer. I am training for a 5K race and I really don't want to have to walk most of it. My longest run is a minute 45 before I am dying. I currently walk a 4.0 and jog at a 5ish. Tonight I did do my last run at 6 and it killed me. BTW I am doing the C25K to get moving. I am naturally a fast person. my normal walk is fast. so walking at a 4.0 is really nothing for me.

    I am interested in what others on here have to say.
  • reedkaus
    reedkaus Posts: 250 Member
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    here's an interesting article that i think is kind of what you're getting at:

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2659003/?tool=pubmed

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