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Breathing test

Good respiratory endurance is linked to better health

How can you do a respiratory endurance test?

  1. Breathe in and out through your nose several times, slowly and deeply.

  2. Then breathe normally and calmly 2-3 times.

  3. Then exhale slowly and when you have exhaled , use your fingers to pinch your nose together to close your nose and close your mouth.

  4. Start the timer as soon as you have closed your mouth and nose after this last exhalation.

  5. It's a good to close your eyes and relax while you wait without breathing.

  6. When you feel the natural need to inhale (air hunger), you do it. Note, you should not wait until you are about to burst, start breathing when the need to inhale comes naturally.

  7. See how many seconds passed before you felt the need to take a breath.

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The following is a table of what is considered low to very good respiratory endurance.

 

0-10 seconds: Low respiratory endurance. This indicates that there are problems related to the respiratory tract. Could be respiratory diseases, asthma, anxiety, severe stress or sleep problems to name a few. If respiratory endurance is very low, it is important to work on it before engaging in activating breath work as it can promote stress in those with very low respiratory endurance. In that case, relaxing breath work sessions (down regulation) are recommended until endurance has increased.

 

10 – 20 seconds: Moderately strong breathing endurance that gives a lot of room for endurance growth. A lot of people start here.

 

20-30 seconds: Good breathing endurance and no reason to be particularly concerned about the airway. Breath endurance can be increased even further.

 

30-40 seconds: Maximum endurance, individuals in very good respiratory shape. More often than not, people who have worked a lot with their breathing.

 

NOTE - It is important to remember that the test is based on inhaling when the natural need to inhale occurs. If you wait longer than that to inhale, you are actually holding your breath too long and the test will not show the correct result.

 

What are the benefits of having good respiratory endurance?

  1. Better endurance

  2. Greater ability to exercise

  3. Better sleep

  4. Reduces stress and anxiety

  5. Increases concentration and attention

  6. Stronger immune system

  7. Minimizes respiratory problems

What affects respiratory endurance?

  1. High stress reduces endurance

  2. Illness

  3. Poor sleep quality

  4. Lifestyle – caffeine consumption, alcohol, diet, etc.

  5. Breathing style – if people breathe a lot through their mouths instead of through their noses

  6. Sometimes people in good shape, such as runners, can't hold their breath for long. Being in good shape and having good breathing capacity often go hand in hand, but not always.

How do we train respiratory endurance?

  1. Light breathing exercises where we test our breathing endurance (air hunger). While breathing, we slow down our breathing and breathe in and out about 5 times, breathing so slowly that we start to feel the air hunger. This strengthens our breathing endurance

  2. Just breathe through your nose

  3. Breath hold walking. Similar to what we do in the respiratory endurance test. While walking, you breathe in and out normally few times and then close your mouth and nose when you are done breathing out and keep walking. You count the steps you take before you feel short of breath, the natural air hunger. Then you inhale again and relax for a moment, breathe normally and do this as often as you feel comfortable with it. You should then slowly see the number increase.

  4. Regular breath sessions is one of the best ways to increase breath endurance. It is common for people to take 4-8 weeks to increase their breathing endurance with regular training. Many people see their breath endurance increase by 2-3 seconds per month according to the breathing endurance test.

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