If you have a considerable amount of stress in your life right now, you’re not alone. The United States is 5 months into the COVID-19 pandemic and likely something we will deal with for the months to come.

Many things are uncertain in our futures such as school, sports and employment. Gain control over your stress levels with a simple technique: Box Breathing.

Understanding the Stress Response

Stress comes in many forms such as physical, mental, and emotional. This type of stress activates the body’s Sympathetic Nervous System. Survival is our primitive instincts when our body is active in the sympathetic state. Imagine running away from a tiger or bear, this is the body’s physiologic response, otherwise known as “fight or flight”.

Physiologic Response to Sympathetic State:

- Increased Heart Rate & Blood Pressure

- Increased Respiration Rate

- Increased Endocrine Response

- Decreased HRV (Heart Rate Variability)

- Poor Digestion & Sleep

Chronic stress will affect sleep patterns, which is the premier marker of recovery. Lack of sleep can disrupt a positive mental state (depression) and cause gains in bodyfat.

Accessing the Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS) is critical during times of increased stress from training, competition, and life altering events. The Parasympathetic System is our relaxation zone otherwise known as “rest and digest”.

Physiologic Response to Parasympathetic State:

- Decreased Heart Rate & Blood Pressure

- Decreased Respiration Rate

- Return to Baseline Endocrine Levels

- Increased HRV

- Improved Digestion & Sleep

Higher levels of recovery will allow for increased performance in training, competition, career and relationships.

How do you access the parasympathetic system? Breath work.

Box Breathing

“Control your breathing, control your mind.

Control you mind, control your thoughts.

Control your thoughts, control you actions.

Control you actions, control your situation.”

Martin Rooney

Box breathing is simply a good entry point to breath work and can be performed in a variety of positions. Breath work has many positive physiologic outcomes but can also be considered a form of meditation.

The “box” is a visual representation of the breath count (seen below).

When introducing athletes to breathing drills, I prefer to have them lie supine (on their back) with the feet slightly elevated. Place the hands on the outside of the rib cage to provide a tactile cue for feedback. As the athlete begins to box breath, I want them to feel the ribs laterally expand (into the hands). During the exhale I want the ribs to move toward the mid-line of the body, which will result in a slight abdominal contraction. Make sure utilize a :04 second breath count in each position.

Conclusion

Box breathing is a great entry point for breath work and provides control over the stress response and recovery. Breathing drills can be performed daily before and after training. I have found breathing drills before bedtime to be highly effective for enhancing sleep, which is the primary form of recovery.

Box Breathing: A Simple Method to Reduce Stress & Enhance Recovery