If you've been following my channel, you'll know the importance of breathing for incorporating relaxation into your sprinting. It's paramount in helping you find that flow state that brings about exceptional sprint performance. One way that forms the base for correct breathing is diaphragmatic breathing and it is that is used in the Be-Activated treatment which is a muscle activation method that wakes up muscles. Diaphragmatic breathing is a breathing method that every athlete should explore as it is a great exercise in helping you use the full lung capacity and the diaphragm itself. This will allow more oxygen to the muscles as well as activating the psoas muscle respectively. However there are different horses for different courses and you maye have tried diaphragmatic breathing and it hasn't worked for you. This is understandable as we all are built differently and different breathing technques work for different people. Diaphragmatic breathing does not work for me. It still has merit for many people and if it works for you then please keep using it. However it was not helping me and I know this because my posture and flexibility was compromised . In this video, I show you a slightly different way of breathing that might help you relax and be at peace if diaphragmatic breathing has not worked for you Please follow me on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/howtorelaxwhilesprinting/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/relaxedsprinting Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/activatemindandbody/ website www.sportsmassagesoxford.co.uk ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UakphgbTqw

As sprinters, we're often focused on the end result (eg timet or a medal). The achievement is all encompassing. Everything about life is focused getting that qualification time or that medal. But by being consumed by the goal, you're missing the point and heaping tension and tightness on your body that will seriously hamper chances of sprinting well. Relaxation is the cornerstone of sprinting. This is an area that is just ignored in standard sprint training and it actually hampers a sprinters career and disillusionment soon arises. Chronic disillusionment will get the athlete to give up. If you're not focusing on how you feel RIGHT NOW then you will not be in the flow. If you are not in the flow, you do not have a mindset for success and you are setting yourself up for injury and running slowly. Being in the flow is the only place where you will be injury free, where you are recovering at your best (because no one knows how to recover) and where you are at your strongest, most energised and most confident. Although practising your sport can help, training is only part of the story. Most athletes think they only have to train hard and eat well to perform well. This is not the case. I'm sure you remember being in the flow. When everything you tried came off. When everything was easy. I certainly do. As a 400m athlete, my fastest races were my easiest races. And ease is what you want. They were easy because I was relaxed. How you feel is crucial to your sports performance and this cannot be over emphasised. It's what I highlight in my Be-Activated treatment. It is however not prioritised in sport regardless of the level of sport and it's also misunderstood. Most athletes are consumed so much by the end goal that they are not happy and not fulfilled until said goal is achieved. Considering all the other pressures we have in daily life, this unfulfilment leads to stress simply because you are not happy where you are right now and if you are not happy then you are in a stressed state. If you want to be the best athlete you can be, you must learn to stop focusing on getting the training done and focus on how you you feel while you are doing the training. Incorporating relaxation into your sprinting needs to be a priority. Feel good and you will perform well. Feel bad and you are highly likely not going to. Train hard on top of feeling bad just makes you weak and gets you injured. How you feel is crucial to how you train and compete. You must be able to be serene and calm when the pressure hits because its in the parasympathetic relaxed state that your body comes alive. Being and staying in relaxed parasympathetic state should be a major part of your sprint training. As it is hard for any athlete to integrate relaxation into their training and life, with the Be-Activated technique, I help you bring about this relaxed state easily and effectively. By using techniques so simple and by applying pressure to points on your body, this brings about changes and transformations that you will feel and see inside a 60 minute session. This will help you do your training in a relaxed state. You cannot be the best athlete you can be by being stressed, demotivated, energy sapped, unhappy and tired. No matter how much training you do, all areas of fitness and strength will be hampered. To learn some techniques about getting in the flow and relaxation, click https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYN-iseHrHw Try out my muscle tests here http://www.thegreatathletenexus.com/ to see whether you are in the flow. ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10b1PxXM-G0