I happened to read this article:
http://www.tullyrunners.com/Articles/RaucciArticle.htm
Go to the "hold your breath" section.
It states that nasal breathing is better for you and will help you better than mouth breathing. Now, I've tried it randomly on a run or two and I feel like I'm not getting enough oxygen... anyone else ever tried it? What do you think?
I tried that last summer after reading that article. I was a slow 5k'er at that point, around 19:30's. I upped mileage (a hell of a lot) and tried nasal breathing for my training miles. Then, during races, I would try breating through my nose as much as possible then use my mouth for whatever else I needed. I felt like I was getting better quality breaths. This really helped my because I have work-induced asthma. After that summer, I was down to 18 minute 5k's. I did a lot of different things that summer, but I feel that nose breathing DID help. It will feel weird at first, but it gets better.
Direct answer from Arthur Lydiard to an audience of a couple of hundred, in response to a similar question...
"When you're running hard, don't worry where the air is coming from, just breathe it in through every available orifice."
According to Thomas W. Allen, PhD, nasal breathing is, in fact, the most efficient means of inhaling air during exercise.
I'm pretty sure Mcdougal has said he doesnt only breath through his nose
its a long season wrote:
According to Thomas W. Allen, PhD, nasal breathing is, in fact, the most efficient means of inhaling air during exercise.
Nonsense. Care to point to Dr. Allen's work that supports this claim. Of course, how does he define "efficiency"?
Let's see - who to believe about distance running - Lydiard or Thomas W. Allen, PhD.? Tough call...
during the short stints i've given it a try, nasal breathing has left me with the same unsatisfying feeling that the original poster experiences.
however, to anyone who has watched alisa harvey run, it's clear that using her nose sure is working for her!
I breathe out of my mouth and nose at the same time.
Dummy-O wrote:
I breathe out of my mouth and nose at the same time.
This. I like wearing breathe right strips while running too. I'm not going to claim that they knock off 3 seconds per mile in the 10K or anything, but it does feel more comfortable to have the feeling that your nose is "open wide".
I would say it's the same feeling as wearing running shorts of different material. It doesn't going to make someone run faster, but it will make them more comfortable
That was possibly the biggest load of pseudo-science I have ever read:S The body does not need carbon dioxide to respire aerobically, it is a waste product created by aerobic respiration:| I feel sorry for his sons and the team he coaches.
There was a discussion around this article on the DyeStat forum at least a year ago. You may find some more information there.
Bottom line, you simply cannot ingest enough O2 solely through your nose. The volume needed for significant levels of running require you to breathe through your mouth.