I was interested in what I read about the Valsalva Maneuver but I wanted to know a little more about how I should instruct my future clients to breath during exercise?
David, good morning and welcome to the DEC Forum. We are happy to have you here and actively participating. With regard to your question, consider the following as it pertains to the Valsalva maneuver. To begin with, we recommend that trainees new to the fitness lifestyle should exhale through the sticking point and to inhale during the less strenuous portion of the lift. The sticking point can be referred to as the transition from the eccentric to the concentric contraction. This is also known as the amortization phase.
However, breathing considerations for advanced clients can be different than that of new trainees. There are some situations in which breath holding may be appropriate. The widely used recommendation to exhale on exertion is based on theory, not research or actual practice, and applies mainly to new trainees and or people with heart and circulatory system problems. For example, if you hold your breath for too long (up to eight seconds with a maximal exertion) you could pass out. This is because the internal pressure in the chest and abdomen increases when you hold your breath on exertion. If it increases greatly, it squeezes down on the blood vessels shuttling blood and oxygen to and from the heart. When this happens, you can black out (but rarely, and only on maximum exertion).
If you are without cardiovascular problems and you do not hold your breath for more than a few seconds as needed in the recommended exercises, the breath holding on exertion is perfectly safe. For experienced and well-trained athletes performing structural exercises (exercises that load the vertebral column) with high loads, the Valsalva Maneuver can be helpful. As you have read, the Valsalva Maneuver involves expiring against a closed glottis. But when combined with contracting muscles of the abdomen and rib cage muscles, creates rigidity in the entire torso which aids in supporting the vertebral column. Inhaling and holding the breath on exertion provides up to 20 percent greater force, stabilizes the spine, and helps prevents lower back injuries. It transforms the trunk (and sometimes the whole body) into a stable unit against which your hips, shoulders, and arms can move more effectively. It makes the exercises safer and more effective. If you have high blood pressure or other circulatory system or heart problems, avoid heavy resistance and breathe holding. In fact, you probably should not participate in a strength or explosive sport, which requires not only great physical exertion but intense breath holding.
Inhaling and holding the breath briefly on exertion—any exertion, in all sports, comes naturally. Many studies have shown that whenever athletic skills are executed properly, athletes hold their breath on the exertion—during the power phase when maximum force is generated. The breath holding is important for generating greater force, having more accuracy and control, as well as for the prevention of injury.
