22/06/2026
Nasal Breathing & Exercise Performance
A 2024 study from Baylor University explored what happens when people train using nasal breathing during aerobic exercise.
Participants completed a 4-week aerobic training program, exercising four times per week. Performing at 70-75% of VO2 max. One group trained using only nasal breathing, while the other used a combination of nose and mouth breathing.
The nasal breathing group demonstrated significantly greater oxygen uptake efficiency, particularly at higher exercise intensities.
Researchers found they achieved similar oxygen consumption while breathing less overall, suggesting improved breathing efficiency.
Why is this important?
Many of us assume that breathing harder means we’re getting more oxygen.
But breathing harder isn’t always breathing better.
In fact, one of the goals of performance breathing is to improve how efficiently we use oxygen, not simply move more air in and out of the body.
This is where concepts like:
✓ CO₂ tolerance
✓ Breathing efficiency
✓ Ventilatory control
✓ Nervous system regulation
become incredibly important for both athletes and everyday exercisers.
As research into breathing continues to grow, we’re learning that how we breathe may play a much bigger role in performance than we once thought.
Next week I’ll be sharing the gear system of Breathing and breaking down how breathing should change across different exercise intensities — from recovery and Pilates through to strength training, running and high-intensity efforts.
Because the goal isn’t to use one breathing style all the time.
It’s knowing which breath to use, when.