The breath decides
Nasal breathing vs mouth breathing What your body actually prefers.
You breathe without thinking about it. Your whole life. But how you do it actually matters.
Most of us breathe through the mouth when we train. It feels natural — the body wants more air, and the mouth is the fastest way in. But the fast way isn't always the best.
What the nose does that the mouth doesn't
Your nose isn't just a hole in your face. It's a complete system. Air passing through the nose is warmed, humidified and filtered on the way in. The mouth lets air in raw and untreated. It's one of the reasons the body is built to breathe through the nose in the first place.
Think of it like the difference between drinking water and drinking water with electrolytes. Both quench your thirst. But one gives the body more to work with.
It's about how it feels
When you breathe through your nose during training, many notice it feels more controlled. Breathing becomes calmer, more rhythmic, more deliberate. Mouth breathing can feel more frantic and stressed — even when you perform just as well.
That's why you see tennis players close their mouth and breathe through the nose between points. They wind down, gather focus and reset mentally in 20 seconds. It's no coincidence — it's a technique elite athletes use deliberately.
Nasal breathing simply helps you stay composed. Calmer breath, sharper focus, more presence in what you do.
But sometimes you need the mouth
Here's the honest part most brands skip. At really high intensity — a sprint, the last kilometre of a race, a decisive rally — the nose can't handle the volume of air the body demands. Then mouth breathing is necessary. It's not a failure. It's your body doing exactly what it should.
The point isn't to never breathe through your mouth. The point is to stay in nasal breathing as long as possible before you have to switch. The longer you manage it, the more control you have over your breath — and over your focus.
Why it feels hard at first
If you've tried nasal breathing during training and found it difficult — that's normal. Your body is used to taking the shortcut through the mouth. Switching takes adaptation, just like changing your running form or adjusting your grip in tennis.
Athletes who train nasal breathing adapt gradually. The body learns. It's not a quick fix — it's a process. But it starts with becoming aware of how you breathe.
What a nasal strip does here
A nasal strip doesn't solve breathing technique for you. What it does is open the nostrils mechanically so the physical resistance drops. That makes it easier to keep nasal breathing going during training — especially in the moments where the body starts wanting to open the mouth.
Think of it as lowering the threshold. You still have to choose to breathe through your nose. But with more open nasal passages the choice gets easier, and you can stay in nasal breathing longer before intensity forces you to add the mouth.
The takeaway
Nasal breathing helps you breathe more controlled, hold focus and stay calm under pressure. Mouth breathing is necessary at maximum effort — and there's nothing wrong with that.
The smartest thing you can do is train your ability to hold nasal breathing longer. Start with easy sessions. Build up gradually. Let the body adapt.
And give it a little help along the way.
Perform Higher.
Shop nasal strips