A question about breathing and squatting.

zach0101 · 04-05-2007, 03:33 PM

I just started to squat and I have a question about breathing. As I understand it you unrack the bar, fill your belly with air, squat down, and exhale on the way back up. My question is that after you do the first rep do you pause after each rep, take another big breath, and squat, or continue to squat and inhale on the way down?

Meatpuppy · 04-05-2007, 03:51 PM

I personally take a deep breath and hold it as long as possible. If I breath out any it seems as if I lose all my air and feels like I fold in half due to deflating. Or as my lifting partner does he exhales just a little each rep.

rickdog · 04-05-2007, 04:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meatpuppy

I personally take a deep breath and hold it as long as possible. If I breath out any it seems as if I lose all my air and feels like I fold in half due to deflating. Or as my lifting partner does he exhales just a little each rep.

I highly reccomend not doing what Meatpuppy suggested. Although it may work fine for him, it can really raise your Blood Pressure. I say this not to knock MP, but I have done it that way in the past and ended up with massive migrane headaches, trust me, no fun. It caused me to have to leave the gym a couple times. IMO, it is best to take a deep breath between every rep, at the very least, do this when going heavy.

jerrylundergard · 04-05-2007, 04:31 PM

I breath in on the way down. I breath in and expand my belly as I breath in. I use a belt on heavy sets and try to expand my belly as much as possible against the belt on the way down. On the way up I breath out. I beath out so that im done breathing out at the top. I try to keep my belly expanded as I breath out and breath out slowly on the way up.

**Lusst** · 04-05-2007, 04:52 PM

*replies without reading entire thread*

You exhale after you complete the lift. Hold it in especially when you're in the hole, but it's ok to let some of the pressure out on the way up.

TheNerdKing · 04-05-2007, 04:58 PM

Pause at the top every rep.

Take a big breath and hold it all the way down and keep holding it on the way up until you know you've nailed the rep.

Pause at the top again.

Take another breath.

Do another squat.

The above only matters for heavier weights.

Don't worry too much about it for your warmup sets.