Breathing
After balance, breathing is one of the most important things to work on. A person can
live without balance but they can't live without breathing. So why focus on breathing second?
Well we are born breathing automatically whereas good balance must be cultivated with practice. As you
will learn, one can breathe in a better manner too with a little practice.
Besides providing oxygen to our brain and removing poisonous carbon dioxide from our bloodstream breathing also affects many of our bodies other functions. All of our muscles burn oxygen to function.
The more you are using the muscles the more oxygen is required. If you push your muscles to the point
that the blood can't provide enough oxygen they will begin burning sugar in your blood (anaerobic respiration) Eventually the whole situation becomes toxic.
A person can literally exercise themselves to death. When most of us exercise we always push our body in some areas into anaerobic cellular respiration and the byproduct is lactic acid. This acid is what makes us feel muscle pain after exercise. Breathing affects mood, awareness, and stress level.
It's important to stay fit. Keeping your lungs, your heart, and your muscles in good condition makes
the whole system more efficient. For example a marathon runner and a couch potato have the exact same
physical processes in regards to breathing and oxygen absorption. However, the marathon runner can run farther, faster, and longer than the couch potato because they have conditioned their cardiovascular and respiratory system to handle the load. The health benefits of regular cardio are legion. Lower blood pressure, lower stress, better mood control, slimmer waistline, and a much healthier sense of well
being. People who exercise regularly statistically live longer as well.
Breathing comes into two varieties voluntary and involuntary. Our bodies breath
without our conscious command. The system for most people runs an autopilot all the time.
I would guess the average person only actually make a conscious effort to breathe less than a half a percent of the time.
However we've learned in martial arts that it's important to occasionally take control of your breathing to achieve a certain desired result.
Our first lesson about breathing relates to fear.
live without balance but they can't live without breathing. So why focus on breathing second?
Well we are born breathing automatically whereas good balance must be cultivated with practice. As you
will learn, one can breathe in a better manner too with a little practice.
Besides providing oxygen to our brain and removing poisonous carbon dioxide from our bloodstream breathing also affects many of our bodies other functions. All of our muscles burn oxygen to function.
The more you are using the muscles the more oxygen is required. If you push your muscles to the point
that the blood can't provide enough oxygen they will begin burning sugar in your blood (anaerobic respiration) Eventually the whole situation becomes toxic.
A person can literally exercise themselves to death. When most of us exercise we always push our body in some areas into anaerobic cellular respiration and the byproduct is lactic acid. This acid is what makes us feel muscle pain after exercise. Breathing affects mood, awareness, and stress level.
It's important to stay fit. Keeping your lungs, your heart, and your muscles in good condition makes
the whole system more efficient. For example a marathon runner and a couch potato have the exact same
physical processes in regards to breathing and oxygen absorption. However, the marathon runner can run farther, faster, and longer than the couch potato because they have conditioned their cardiovascular and respiratory system to handle the load. The health benefits of regular cardio are legion. Lower blood pressure, lower stress, better mood control, slimmer waistline, and a much healthier sense of well
being. People who exercise regularly statistically live longer as well.
Breathing comes into two varieties voluntary and involuntary. Our bodies breath
without our conscious command. The system for most people runs an autopilot all the time.
I would guess the average person only actually make a conscious effort to breathe less than a half a percent of the time.
However we've learned in martial arts that it's important to occasionally take control of your breathing to achieve a certain desired result.
Our first lesson about breathing relates to fear.
Fear...
Children instinctively hold their breath when they are afraid. Many carry this habit well into adulthood. Something we see in martial arts that is common is when a student first spars another student they feel fear and hold their breath.
While sparring is not the same as fighting, many of the feelings are similar and if it's new to you then it's usual to feel a bit of fear. Time and again we've seen new people hold their breath for several seconds at the beginning of a sparring match. Combine the lack of respiration with increased demand on the muscles to perform and the body enters anaerobic respiration rapidly. If the student doesn't begin to breath they will eventually go unconscious and normal involuntary breathing will resume. Right away we start telling our students to breathe. It's vital regardless of what you may be feeling that you keep breathing. The first step to
conquering fear is to breathe. In through the nose, out through the mouth.
We have found that once we learn to breath in the presence of fear we suddenly develop to the ability to ACT in the presence of fear and more importantly to THINK in the presence of fear.
If courage is the ability to think and act in the best way even while afraid then the path to courage is to conquer fear with breathing.
While sparring is not the same as fighting, many of the feelings are similar and if it's new to you then it's usual to feel a bit of fear. Time and again we've seen new people hold their breath for several seconds at the beginning of a sparring match. Combine the lack of respiration with increased demand on the muscles to perform and the body enters anaerobic respiration rapidly. If the student doesn't begin to breath they will eventually go unconscious and normal involuntary breathing will resume. Right away we start telling our students to breathe. It's vital regardless of what you may be feeling that you keep breathing. The first step to
conquering fear is to breathe. In through the nose, out through the mouth.
We have found that once we learn to breath in the presence of fear we suddenly develop to the ability to ACT in the presence of fear and more importantly to THINK in the presence of fear.
If courage is the ability to think and act in the best way even while afraid then the path to courage is to conquer fear with breathing.
Wind...
The next lesson about breathing has to do with wind. Have you ever fallen down hard or been hit hard in the torso and had the wind knocked out of you? For several seconds you struggle just to take a breath and breathing actually hurts for several minutes afterword. Keeping your wind has really nothing to do with wind at all. It's really about the muscles that support your diaphragm and that drive your lungs. A sudden shock to your body can affect these muscles and you will literally stop breathing however hard you might try to continue. This stoppage is generally temporary but if the shock is severe enough losing your wind could actually be lethal.
It is generally best to inhale on movements towards your body and to exhale on movements that extend away. In other words if your punch, rapid exhale, timed with the punch. Trapping and going home inhale in time with the movement.
When you exhale your chest and stomach empty of air. The ribs and muscles draw in tighter forming a more solid and more cohesive structure that is better able to absorb punishment. I once took a solid kick right in my stomach, the kick was so hard it moved me bodily several feet. Before my training it would certainly have knocked the wind out of me but because I was breathing correctly the kick really didn't affect me much at all.
It is generally best to inhale on movements towards your body and to exhale on movements that extend away. In other words if your punch, rapid exhale, timed with the punch. Trapping and going home inhale in time with the movement.
When you exhale your chest and stomach empty of air. The ribs and muscles draw in tighter forming a more solid and more cohesive structure that is better able to absorb punishment. I once took a solid kick right in my stomach, the kick was so hard it moved me bodily several feet. Before my training it would certainly have knocked the wind out of me but because I was breathing correctly the kick really didn't affect me much at all.
Kiyap, Kiai (spirit shout, projection)
While the term Kiai is Japanese and Kiyap is Korean the notion is similar. The idea of Kiyap is to use a rapid and sometimes loud exhalation of air to generate additional force.
Have you ever lifted a heavy object and you audibly grunted while you lifted it. That grunt helped you exhale, compress the correct muscles in your torso, and in a small but meaningful way it gave you greater force to lift. Whether you knew it or not you issued a kiyap.
When we fight, that rapid exhalation of air (whether we actually shout or not) gives us just a little bit more force. Many students are taught to actually shout. This does one thing, it ensures everybody in the room that the student is in fact exhaling with force. When I fight I prefer to be very quiet. Sometimes in a fight you can briefly vanish from view or go behind your opponent and the less information you impart to assist them the better. But while I don't make a large sound I am still using Kiyap to gain the force I need and to protect myself.
Some have said that an extra loud Kiyap can strike fear into an opponent. An unexpected
shout can be startling. But I find that of all its uses this is the least of them.
Kiai also means to project, to hurl your energy and your body into and through your attacker.
Have you ever lifted a heavy object and you audibly grunted while you lifted it. That grunt helped you exhale, compress the correct muscles in your torso, and in a small but meaningful way it gave you greater force to lift. Whether you knew it or not you issued a kiyap.
When we fight, that rapid exhalation of air (whether we actually shout or not) gives us just a little bit more force. Many students are taught to actually shout. This does one thing, it ensures everybody in the room that the student is in fact exhaling with force. When I fight I prefer to be very quiet. Sometimes in a fight you can briefly vanish from view or go behind your opponent and the less information you impart to assist them the better. But while I don't make a large sound I am still using Kiyap to gain the force I need and to protect myself.
Some have said that an extra loud Kiyap can strike fear into an opponent. An unexpected
shout can be startling. But I find that of all its uses this is the least of them.
Kiai also means to project, to hurl your energy and your body into and through your attacker.
Mastery of Mind and Body
While the primary purpose of martial arts is to prevail in a fight the byproducts of training are well known.
One byproduct is the absolute mastery of our mind and body. What does this mastery entail?
Much of it borders on the mystical. It could be such mundane things as manually slowing your heart rate with calm steady breaths. It could mean lowering your blood pressure with thought alone. I could mean moving through a strange and darkened room without stubbing your toes.
These things manifest a slightly differently for different martial artists but all martial artist agree that as they progress the way they perceive and interact with the world around them changes.
One of the first crucial steps to moving this direction is breathing.
One byproduct is the absolute mastery of our mind and body. What does this mastery entail?
Much of it borders on the mystical. It could be such mundane things as manually slowing your heart rate with calm steady breaths. It could mean lowering your blood pressure with thought alone. I could mean moving through a strange and darkened room without stubbing your toes.
These things manifest a slightly differently for different martial artists but all martial artist agree that as they progress the way they perceive and interact with the world around them changes.
One of the first crucial steps to moving this direction is breathing.
Practical Exercise...
When you are practicing your Hapkido try to exhale whenever your project any part of your body away from your core and inhale whenever you drawn anything towards your core. Punch breath out. Trap, breath in.