These days we complain about not being able to play outdoor sports and being forced to stay indoors. Granted that we are obliged to do this and for very good reasons, there are many other types of workouts that can be done: we have been offering a couple a week for some time now by Elisa Laffi and you can find as many in our pages.
Those who have focused by force and necessity on indoor workouts (like yours truly) will have realized how crucial breathing is. When you do exercises that you are not used to doing normally, you neglect breathing, as if it were not that important. Instead, after a while you realize how crucial it is for the harmony of the exercise itself and because it makes your body work better. After all, how could it be otherwise? Oxygen serves us to burn energy, and we could not perform any activity by breathing badly. If we learn how to do it well instead we improve our performance and the effectiveness of the exercises we do. And it improves all of our lives, as told by Mike Maric, 2004 world freediving champion and famous Breathe Coach, professor and popularizer, and freediving coach for Federica Pellegrini and Filippo Magnini, as well as many other blue medalists in swimming.
Now, especially
Breathing well serves to contain and control anxiety, and never more important than these days is it to do it well. As Maric says, “Air hunger is deadly. Therefore, preparation is crucial. Internal dialogue is conditioned by two factors: your approach to the breath, by which you are able to quiet the mind, and your work with the mind, that is, your mental approach to challenging and using your resources.” Since air is a limited commodity, knowing how to use it well through breathing teaches how to make good use of one’s resources, both physical and mental.
You may have noticed how much these days having knowledge of your limits and knowing how to manage your calm, patience and control has helped you overcome emotional swings or even simply boredom. How many emotions are you experiencing in fact? Fear, hope, boredom, anger, anxiety, despair, distrust, and then again elation and satisfaction. A whole emotional arc that, despite very little physical activity, leaves you exhausted.
Give yourself microgoals
That is why Maric advises the athletes he follows to follow their instincts, without stress. “We have to remain calm, and the best thing is to give ourselves microgoals. As a coach working on certain aspects of preparation, I have planned alternate days with different exercises, where the goals are to take pleasure in working out and regain that warm feeling when doing sports. Without getting into the competitive mood, but just letting go“.
This is the right time to focus on feelings and one’s emotional state, leaving aside the physical one, which, inevitably will be affected. We will return to training as we once did with a few extra kilograms and some fatigue but certainly with a deeper understanding of ourselves and our ability to take on challenges and overcome them.
The importance of microgoals is also motivated by the need to give oneself more frequent and daily satisfaction, since as we all do not know when we can resume training methodically and freely, so it is impossible to make long-term plans.
What to do?
We used to complain that we never had enough time to do everything, now we complain that we have too much time. For Maric, this is a good time to use our imagination and review our lives and priorities from a different and unprecedented point of view.
“You cannot afford to fall into boredom or bad habits. In fact, one must learn to manage one’s time even better. We used to complain about not being able to do everything because of too many commitments, now it is even more of a challenge. The daily question is: What do I do? I think the time is right to put one’s skills to work on these new mental challenges. Without going anxious and without getting bored.”
With one final consideration, borrowed from Niccolò Campriani, Italian marksman and winner of three gold medals and one silver medal at the Olympic Games: “Champions are not recognized by how many competitions they win, but by how they get back up after a defeat.”
This, too, is a battle to be fought: in our own small way, it is against boredom, distrust and disorientation of an unprecedented and at times worrying situation. But like any crisis it will help us grow stronger.
Breathe. Inhale and exhale. Moving on.
(Thanks to Follow Your Passion for sharing)