John, Chris, and Eric: thanks again, all good information, and the right technique for acquiring the habit, as now appears obvious, is simply to start doing it when you can and don't try to when you can't. That is, when cruising along, breath through your nose; when riding a fixed gear into a headwind or climbing a steep a hill, don't; and in this way gradually extend your ability to use the technique.
I'm grateful that my parents so long ago kept nagging me to breath through my nose (*"Shut yer mouth"!* -- Seriously, they were persistent but gentle) so the general habit is already well established. My sister sent me some information from public webites, which I'll also peruse. On Mon, Mar 16, 2026 at 1:34 PM EGNolan <[email protected]> wrote: > I too have read the book and focused on nose-breathing while riding (and > everything else) for a few years. Outside of Pilates to help with position > and strength, nose breathing has been one of my favorite components of > fitness. > > For me, just like any adaptation, the focus on nose breathing meant I had > to slow down. For a while. Then I built tolerance and my body adapted and > now I can produce more power at a lower heart rate while breathing through > my nose than I could previously breathing mouth agape. In all out efforts, > my mouth still opens to gobble up the air, but under normal rides where > endurance is more a priority than absolute speed, the mouth stays shut. > > I will say that I have found it harder in headwinds than anywhere else and > that singlespeed riding in a headwind is extremely difficult to manage > energy expenditure and breathing technique. You kind of have to do whatever > it takes to move, so, your example would've been difficult for anyone...So > try the nose breathing when there are no hills, headwinds or other added > difficulties first and build towards them. > > My $.02. > Best, > Eric > > On Sunday, March 15, 2026 at 11:17:24 PM UTC-4 John Rinker wrote: > >> Hey Patrick, >> >> Good question! I don't really remember being very regimented in my >> approach. I'm sure I just breathed through my mouth when I felt I wasn't >> getting enough oxygen. However, I do remember something about this feeling >> of suffocation being addressed in Nestor's book. (I think he was talking >> about experimenting with nose breathing while running.) I'm sure that your >> reading of the book will make some things clearer. I remember trusting the >> science about the structure of our nostrils being more conducive to the >> exchange of oxygen. In this way, I felt I was able to push a little more >> each time I experienced the feeling of not getting enough oxygen. As I >> said, it took me some time to adapt, but I'm pleased I persisted. >> >> There's also a fascinating exploration in *Breathe* of how our facial >> structure has changed since the advent of softer foods as a result of the >> Industrial Revolution, and why breathing through our nostrils no longer >> seems quite so natural. >> >> Oh, and Chris, I also experimented with taping my mouth shut during >> sleep, but invariably I would awake with my tongue taped to my ear! >> >> Cheers, John >> >> >> On Sunday, March 15, 2026 at 6:24:30 PM UTC-7 Patrick Moore wrote: >> >>> John and Chris: Question: when one starts out from habitual mount >>> breathing — I mean as a cyclist, where it seems absolutely necessary to >>> breathe through your mouth to keep up with the oxygenation required by your >>> exertion: how do you make the change from this sort of mouth breathing to >>> nose breathing? This when, if you try to breathe through your nose as you >>> are moderately powering up a hill or against a headwind, you very quickly — >>> within 30 seconds — feel as if you are going to suffocate? I experienced >>> this exact situation this mornin on the way to church, riding NE against a >>> strong NW headwind. >>> >>> Is the technique for the transition simply to back off and ride at such >>> low levels of exertion (translated into basic English:* slowly*) that, >>> in the early stages, you can get by by nose breathing? >>> >>> On Sat, Mar 14, 2026 at 7:03 PM John Rinker <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>>> Hey Patrick, >>>> >>>> I read James Nestor's book Breathe about 3 years ago and switched to >>>> nose breathing as a result. Of course, I have no 'scientific' evidence to >>>> present (I believe he has already done that), but I can say that it has >>>> improved the rate at which I breathe and the recovery time to return to >>>> normal breathing. There is a long, steep hill that is the final approach to >>>> my home, so all my rides end with an approximate 15-minute climb up this. >>>> It took me a good 4-5 months to fully make the transition to breathing >>>> solely through my nose from the bottom to the top of this climb, but since >>>> I feel my breathing is slower, more even, less strained, and offers quicker >>>> recovery at the top. Of course, this is only anecdotal, but I see no >>>> compelling reason to switch back to slack-jawed mouth breathing. >>>> >>>> The book is worth a read. >>>> >>>> Cheers, John >>>> >>>> On Saturday, March 14, 2026 at 3:33:00 PM UTC-7 [email protected] >>>> wrote: >>>> >>>>> I seem to recall Grant writing about this in an old RR. At any rate, I >>>>> stumbled across this by chance. >>>>> >>>>> https://youtu.be/QgD-bUD99gA >>>>> >>>>> Real or hooey? The authority interviewed seems plausible and has a >>>>> good web presence, and there seems to be a deep body of research. >>>>> >>>>> Thoughts? >>>>> >>>>> -- >>>>> >>>>> Patrick Moore >>>>> Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum >>>>> >>>>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >>>>> >>>>> Executive resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, letters, and other >>>>> writing services >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >>>>> >>>>> *When thou didst not, savage, k**now thine own meaning,* >>>>> >>>>> *But wouldst gabble like a** thing most brutish,* >>>>> >>>>> *I endowed thy purposes w**ith words that made them known.* >>>>> >>>> -- >>>> >>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >>>> Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>>> an email to [email protected]. >>>> To view this discussion visit >>>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/d7f6542c-7710-43c7-a065-3250afc12647n%40googlegroups.com >>>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/d7f6542c-7710-43c7-a065-3250afc12647n%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>>> . >>>> >>> >>> -- >>> >>> Patrick Moore >>> Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum >>> >>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >>> >>> Executive resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, letters, and other writing >>> services >>> >>> >>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >>> >>> *When thou didst not, savage, k**now thine own meaning,* >>> >>> *But wouldst gabble like a** thing most brutish,* >>> >>> *I endowed thy purposes w**ith words that made them known.* >>> >> -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/9d32e867-f57d-4227-b918-d26cb50e510fn%40googlegroups.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/9d32e867-f57d-4227-b918-d26cb50e510fn%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- Patrick Moore Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Executive resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, letters, and other writing services ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *When thou didst not, savage, k**now thine own meaning,* *But wouldst gabble like a** thing most brutish,* *I endowed thy purposes w**ith words that made them known.* -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/CALuTfgvZk5JtMchGUFB5Vdpf1aw3yGbf6_QFJPLi-1F8jUfP3w%40mail.gmail.com.
