The Motor Unit

Here’s a simple take on post-exercise cool down to kick-start recovery - breathe.

But before I go into the breathing techniques, why should you incorporate cooling down? When you exercise intensely and right after your session, you’re in a state of fight or flight because of the physical and mental demands a workout can place on your body. This is marked by sweating, higher blood pressure, faster breathing, alertness. Basically, you’re stressed.

Choose any one of the breathing patterns and repeat for a minimum of 3 minutes after your workout to downregulate your nervous system and calm yourself to start up the recovery process. Try it for yourself and notice the state of your mind and body right after the cool-down process.

Now, some might want to just stretch right after a workout to cool down, but I find that if you’re incorporating a full range of motion in your weight lifting routines, then flexibility improves equally.

So, if you’re up for saving time and if you’re pretty sure you’ve incorporated a full range of motion in your lifts then just breathe through your belly by implementing any one of the following simple protocols to kick-start the cool-down. Keep in mind that all these protocols can be performed either by sitting up straight, by lying down straight, or by lying down with your feet up on a bench with your knees flexed at 90 degrees.

a. Box breathing - Inhale through your nose for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, exhale through your mouth for 4 seconds and hold again for 4 seconds.

b. 4-7-8 breathing - Inhale through your nose for 4 seconds, hold for 7 seconds, exhale through your nose for 8 seconds, and repeat.

c. 5-1-5-1 breathing - Inhale through your nose for 5 seconds, hold for 1 second, exhale through your nose for 5 seconds, and hold for 1 second.

Remember to perform belly breathing and not chest breathing. If you’re unsure, belly breathing is when you breathe into your belly area and feel it expand while chest breathing involves your chest area expanding.