In this conversation, JJ Ruescas, a human optimization strategist and expert in breathwork, shares his insights on the transformative power of breath. He discusses the significance of various breathing techniques, emphasizing diaphragmatic breathing and the crucial role of awareness in stress management. JJ explains how optimal breathing can enhance energy, focus, and even intimate experiences. Listeners will learn how breathwork can support training and recovery while improving overall mental clarity and emotional resilience.
Breathwork is vital for human optimization, affecting physical, emotional, and mental states through tailored breathing techniques for various scenarios.
Nose breathing and diaphragmatic techniques enhance oxygen exchange and activate lower lung receptors, ultimately improving overall respiratory health.
Regulating breathing patterns can significantly improve sleep quality by promoting relaxation and establishing routines that cue the nervous system for rest.
Deep dives
The Importance of Breathwork
Breathwork is essential for human optimization as it influences our physical, emotional, and mental states. Many people engage in 'mono-breathing,' persisting in shallow chest breathing predominantly through the mouth, which can negatively affect well-being. By learning various breathing techniques, individuals can tailor their breathing to match different situations, enhancing performance and emotional regulation. This adaptability allows for a richer experience of life, akin to utilizing different flavors of breathing for specific contexts.
Nose Breathing vs. Mouth Breathing
Nose breathing is recommended because it filters air and engages the diaphragm more effectively than mouth breathing. The physiological benefits of diaphragmatic breathing include better oxygen exchange and activation of the lower lungs where vital receptors exist. Additionally, slow, controlled breathing is emphasized, with optimal practices suggesting a six-breath-per-minute rhythm to foster a sense of relaxation and focus. This knowledge shifts the belief that breathwork is simply about taking deeper breaths, highlighting the need for awareness of breath quality.
Understanding Carbon Dioxide and Stress
Carbon dioxide plays a crucial role in regulating our nervous system, yet society often views it negatively as simply a waste product. Higher sensitivity to carbon dioxide can lead to overbreathing, resulting in suboptimal oxygen usage and poor circulation. By familiarizing ourselves with our carbon dioxide levels and practicing breath-holding techniques, we can improve our endurance and overall health. Thus, embracing carbon dioxide as a necessary element in respiratory health is vital for achieving balance.
Breathwork for Sleep and Recovery
Effective sleep depends on the regulation of our breathing patterns to cue the nervous system for rest. Simple techniques such as box breathing can promote relaxation and establish a nightly routine that signals the body to wind down. Practicing breath control before sleep allows individuals to achieve deeper relaxation in shorter amounts of time, enhancing sleep quality. This approach helps transition the body from a state of alertness to one conducive to restful sleep.
Holistic Human Optimization Framework
The Human Ops Framework consists of crucial elements such as respiration, nutrition, movement, and emotional well-being. It emphasizes the interconnectedness of these components, suggesting that optimizing breathing can significantly influence other areas. People are encouraged to baseline their habits and awareness before making improvements, which leads to meaningful changes in their performance and emotional states. This holistic approach ensures that individuals understand their bodies and minds, allowing for personalized strategies to enhance overall wellness.
In this episode of the Stamina Lab podcast, founder Glen Lubbert speaks with JJ Ruescas, a human optimization strategist, which includes being an expert breathwork coach. Glen has attended many of his live breathwork sessions in Austin, TX and they are a transformative reset from the stress and emotional buildup that cumulatively drags us down in all parts of our life. He often walks away from these sessions with a level of feeling alive that he can't believe comes from just breathing for 90 minutes. Even though you breathe every day, you probably don't know how to breathe optimally for different phases of your day. How do you breathe to prepare for a big presentation? To focus and drop into a flow state? To have more energy? To physically perform at your best? To wind down and get ready for sleep? Or even to have better sex? Glen and JJ discuss all that and more. If you really want to perform at your best, then learning how to breathe is a key skill. JJ breaks it down for you in this episode –
For full show notes and episode resources, visit staminalab.io.
Topics:
The type of breathing that JJ believes we should strive for in our day to day
The difference between mouth breathing, nose breathing, and belly (or diaphragmatic) breathing
What to do when you notice your breath and the power of awareness
The role that your nervous system plays in pairing with your breathing to either increase or decrease stress
How breathwork can be effective for training, endurance, and recovery
Carbon Dioxide and what you need to know in order to use it effectively for your overall performance
How humming comes into play with breathing, regulating your nervous system, and even getting better sleep
The role that social conditioning has in creating healthier breathwork and how JJ solves this in his client sessions
The components of JJ’s Human OPS framework
How JJ recommends that a beginner starts their breathwork journey
Book your discovery session for Stamina Lab's Sleep Coaching Program at staminalab.io/sleep/
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