03/06/2026
More oxygen? Not exactly.
What you really want is higher CO₂ tolerance. When your body tolerates more CO₂, your lactate threshold rises and your body becomes more efficient at using oxygen.
This is something I’ve been getting a lot of questions about lately, especially from higher level players. But in reality, this should already start at a young age. Imagine the advantage if you build this early.
Many players — and parents — don’t realize that they breathe incorrectly. Mouth breathing, shallow chest breathing, constant tension… and suddenly players think they have “exercise asthma” because they feel short of breath during matches.
A lot of players experience that tight feeling or the sensation of not getting enough oxygen during games.
Start with something simple: relaxed breathing at rest.
If you already breathe shallow and tense when sitting or lying down, how are you supposed to breathe efficiently when the intensity of a match increases?
Modern life doesn’t help either. Stress, mouth breathing, chest breathing… all working against you.
Give yourself more breathing capacity by using your nose as your main breathing system.
Practice diaphragmatic breathing. Place one hand on your belly and one on your ribs while sitting or lying down. Let your belly expand as you inhale and flatten as you exhale. Allow your ribs to expand as well.
Try slowing your breathing down to about 6 breaths per minute:
4 seconds in, 6 seconds out.
This immediately relaxes the body, reduces wasted energy, and helps suppress the stress response.
Try it yourself.
Maybe this is one of the biggest performance secrets that many athletes still ignore.
Want more performance tips like this?
Follow along and stay on top of your game. ⚽️
OXYGEN
BREATHING
EXERCISE ASTHMA
