When it comes to resistance training, breathing is often overlooked. Most clients focus on form, load, or reps—but howyou breathe can play a powerful role in performance, recovery, and long-term health. At Ascend Performance, we’re always looking to integrate methods that improve output and resilience. One simple yet highly effective technique? Nasal-only breathing.

In this blog, we’ll explore the physiological benefits of nasal breathing during resistance training, and why it’s a great tool for most sets—except when you’re pushing near-maximal loads.

🧠 The Physiology Behind Nasal Breathing

Nasal breathing isn't just about being calm and quiet. It taps into deeper systems that impact performance and recovery:

1. Increased Nitric Oxide Production

Breathing through the nose naturally increases the production of nitric oxide, a gas that improves vasodilation—widening of blood vessels. This means:

• Better oxygen delivery to working muscles.

• More efficient waste removal (CO₂, lactate).

• Improved circulatory efficiency during sets.

2. Improved Diaphragmatic Activation

Nasal breathing promotes deeper, diaphragm-dominant breaths compared to mouth breathing, which is often shallow and chest-based.

• Engaging the diaphragm creates better core stability during lifts.

• Supports intra-abdominal pressure for a more natural bracing strategy during movements like squats or deadlifts.

3. Autonomic Nervous System Regulation

Nasal-only breathing favors parasympathetic tone (rest-and-digest state), helping:

• Keep heart rate more stable between sets.

• Improve recovery rate session-to-session.

• Reduce unnecessary stress responses, especially in higher-volume sessions.

4. CO₂ Tolerance and Respiratory Efficiency

Training under nasal-only conditions gradually improves your CO₂ tolerance, allowing you to:

• Breathe less frequently while still delivering enough oxygen.

• Delay the onset of fatigue in longer sessions.

• Train your body to be more metabolically efficient.

🔩 When to Use Nasal Breathing

We recommend nasal-only breathing for most of your resistance training, particularly in:

• Warm-up sets

• Hypertrophy (8–15 rep) ranges

• Functional accessory work

• Conditioning circuits

• Tempo or time-under-tension sets

This strategy helps keep your nervous system balanced and allows you to stay more composed under physical stress.

🚨 The Exception: Maximal and Near-Maximal Efforts

There’s a threshold where nasal breathing becomes a limiter—not a performance enhancer.

During low-rep, high-intensity sets (e.g., 1–3RM), the body’s demand for oxygen and the need to rapidly offload CO₂ increase dramatically. Mouth breathing allows for:

• Greater ventilation volume (air in/out per breath).

• Faster respiratory rate when needed.

• More aggressive bracing via a controlled Valsalva maneuver.

In this context, mouth breathing is functional and appropriate—just like switching to high gear in a car to handle a steep hill.

🧘 How to Train Nasal Breathing

To make nasal breathing your default pattern in resistance training:

1. Start with warm-ups and submaximal work.

2. Use a metronome or tempo to control your rep pace and breathing cadence.

3. Practice exhale-focused bracing (short, forceful nasal exhales during exertion).

4. If needed, tape your mouth lightly (e.g., during mobility or easy conditioning work) to build awareness.

5. Monitor heart rate—if it’s spiking too quickly, you’re likely overbreathing or defaulting to mouth.

🧠 Final Thoughts

At Ascend, we’re not just about sets and reps—we’re about systems that create high-performance humans. Nasal breathing may seem small, but its impact compounds over time. Better breath = better oxygenation, better recovery, and better focus.

So unless you're pushing your heaviest lifts of the day, breathe through your nose, train smarter, and ascend higher.