Would you like to increase your sparring time and fighting capabilities? Work breathing techniques into your Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training! Just as mastering the techniques that provide prowess on the mats, breathing is an essential part of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training. Proper breathing techniques can not only improve your performance in competition, controlling your breath can help you increase the intensity of your Brazilian Jiu Jitsu conditioning. There is also a mental component to good breathing practices. Becoming mindful of your breathing can calm you and help you to become more in tune with yourself and your actions.
Huffing and puffing on the mats is a telltale sign that a competitor is winded, allowing their opponent to gain the advantage. One of the things that can distinguish a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu novice from an advanced Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioner is the way that they breathe. A master of the sport will take breaths in controlled, calm, regular intervals or patterns such as deep inhalation through the nose followed by several strong exhalations.
If you are looking for superior strength and physical fitness, you need to fuel your muscular system with oxygen. Conversely, improper breathing can build tension, as well as create a lack of flexibility and flowing movement – both of which are crucial in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Pay attention to your breathing on the mats. A faster breathing rate means you are drawing in less oxygen and you will tire more quickly. If you can slow your breathing, taking consistent and purposeful breaths, you will conserve energy.
It may sound crazy, but something as simple as deliberate breathing can improve our focus and make us stronger. Take professional weight lifting, for instance. Weight lifters hold their breath when they lift incredible amounts of weight. Don’t get me wrong, holding your breath will quickly exhaust your energy, providing short-lived results; but let’s take breathing modification to the next level. For energy that fuels our muscular system for continual physical exertion, we need to breathe with purpose. Optimal breathing techniques increase energy, endurance and can maximize recovery time.
Types of Breathing Methods
There are several types of breathing techniques which are beneficial in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, from deep breathing to better control your oxygen levels throughout a match, to the Rickson Gracie percussive breathing method which is similar to the breathing control used in yoga. Here is a sampling for your review:
Deep Breathing
The deeper your breath, the more oxygen is drawn into the system. The more extended the exhalations, the more cardiovascular capacity the breather creates. An extremely effective way to ingest oxygen into your lungs is with long, relaxed breaths from the diaphragm. Diaphragmatic breathing, which contracts the diaphragm and expands the abdomen as air enters the lungs, can fill the majority of the lungs – literally up to 50% more than shallower chest breathing. If you feel yourself becoming gassed, you can also use deep breathing – taking a few deep breaths to get your wind back.
The Gracie Family Breathing Technique
Rickson Gracie, one of the world’s best grapplers, took breathing in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to a whole new level. The concept is that breathing with purpose gives us control and steady, rhythmic breathing will provide a continual and considerable source of oxygen to your muscles. The Gracie family breathing technique is a modified version of Pranayama, the breathing used in yoga. This percussive breathing method increases the expansion of the ribcage and, subsequently, the amount of oxygen you can draw through the lungs and into the body.
It is accomplished by inhaling deeply with lateral, accordion-style chest expansion. Then use the abdominal muscles to exhale with several, quick, short blows. Shh, shh, shh, shh, shh! No, I’m not shushing you like a bad-tempered librarian. That is how the rhythmic diaphragmatic contractions of the Gracie family percussive breathing technique sound.
Nose Breathing
Inhaling through your nose warms the air entering your lungs, making processing the oxygen less work and resulting in a more efficient cardiovascular system.
Breathwork
Incorporating optimal breathing methods throughout practice and conditioning can improve your performance during competition. Controlled breathing is not as easy as you may think, but the following tips may help:
You can start by lying flat and facing upward. Then placing one hand on your stomach and the other on your chest. This can help you to be sure that it is your stomach (not your chest) that expands when you inhale. Then try sitting up in a lotus position and taking purposeful breaths from the diaphragm. Inhale as much breath as possible and hold it in for a bit before exhaling. When you feel you have gained a good grasp of diaphragmatic breathing, try taking it to the mats.
Ok, let’s take a breath to talk about where you can learn more…
To learn about proper Brazilian Jiu Jitsu techniques from the masters of the sport, become part of the Ralph Gracie Mission Viejo Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Academy family. Please feel free to call 949-400-7108 for more information.
