Why Can’t You Breathe?

It’s the first check when we arrive and the last thing we do when we check out. Without it life does not exist.
The simple of simple. The essence of life itself.

Yet somewhere along the way, many of us forgot how to do it. We rush, we stress, we train, we work and barely notice the breath that fuels it all. Then one day we’re gasping, not just in training, but in meetings, in relationships, in life. For what we think isn’t an apparent reason.

The reality is that if we lose control of breath, we lose control of body, mind, and outcomes.

Think about the last time you were under pressure. A race finish, a high-stakes meeting, or even an argument. Your breath was shallow and fast. Heart racing, shoulders tight, mind foggy. That’s physiology at work. Shallow breathing keeps the body on high alert. Stress hormones spike, muscles tighten, and the brain shifts into survival mode. You burn energy without output.

Deep, controlled breathing flips the switch. It calms the system, lowers heart rate, improves oxygen delivery, and clears the mind. In training, it lets you hold higher effort for longer. In life, it gives you space to respond instead of react.

If it is that simple, why do we forget to breathe? Modern life. Hours hunched over laptops, phones and devices compress the ribcage. Constant rushing and distraction make breath an afterthought. Over time, the body adapts to shallow, chest-driven patterns. We train ourselves into dysfunction.

Look back to some ancient traditions, from yoga to martial arts, they put breath at the centre of mastery. The science proves its impact on heart rate, blood chemistry, and endurance. Pause for a second and just notice how you feel after three deep breaths versus three shallow ones.

The problem is probably deeper than you think as poor breathing shows up everywhere:

• Training: Faster fatigue, slower recovery, weaker output.
• Work: Stress dominates, focus vanishes.
• Relationships: Patience is replaced by reactivity.
• Health: Anxiety, poor sleep, posture issues.

As you may have heard me allude to in earlier posts we are constantly brainwashed over marginal gains, yet overlook the most accessible lever of all.

A simple breathing practice, that can be done anywhere, anytime, no gadgets, no complexity. Try to inhale through the nose for 4 seconds, then exhale through the nose for 6 seconds. If those time domains are too long shorten them slightly to start. Repeat for a count of 10 breaths, if it goes well increase. Always keep the exhale longer than the inhale. This signals safety to the nervous system and shifts you out of fight-or-flight.

Over time, you’ll breathe deeper, calmer, more efficiently. Training will feel smoother. Stress will become more manageable. You gain presence in conversations and patience under pressure.

Of course like all skills breathing needs training, for some re-training, it is a skill we have forgotten or just not focussed on. Create a daily practice, see it as important as brushing your teeth, the teeth of the nervous system. Make time for it daily.

It is time to learn to breathe again, once you master your breath, you’ll discover you can master much more.

No Weakness.
Marcus