Exhale or exhale with force during strength training

"Exhale" and "expiration" are completely different expressions of the same physiological process. They are essentially the discharge of gas from the lungs. There is no need to waste a long time on the meaning of the word.

In fact, this rule is not a standard set by anyone out of thin air. It completely follows the instinct of the human body. When you lift a heavy box at home, do you exhale unconsciously? That is, the body spontaneously cooperates with the force to contract the core. The same goes for strength training: exhaling when exerting force can drive the transversus abdominis to contract synchronously, and the intra-abdominal pressure is stable, which is equivalent to putting a built-in support belt on the lumbar spine. It is not easy to swing the waist and the contraction of the target muscles will be more concentrated. When I first practiced bench pressing, I couldn't remember the rhythm of my breathing. The coach asked me to shout "ha" loudly when I pushed up. At first, I felt like I was shouting "Haha!" in front of everyone in the gym. After trying two sets, I found that the barbell that always shook when pushing to the highest point was much more stable, and the soreness in the chest muscles was much more obvious than when I held my breath and carried it to death.

Of course, this does not mean that this rule is an ironclad rule. Different training schools have different breathing logics. People who often watch powerlifting videos must have seen athletes whose faces turn red when trying to hold heavy weights. That’s because they use Watts breathing: before exerting force, take a deep breath and hold it, completely locking the entire core, until the weight is lifted and stabilized before breathing. This method can maximize the intra-abdominal pressure and can leverage much heavier weights than conventional breathing patterns, but it also puts a lot of pressure on the heart, lungs, and intracranial pressure, and there is no professional guidance. Practicing and adjusting movements, ordinary enthusiasts can easily be like the young man I met in the gym last week. He imitated others to hold his breath for 120kg deadlift. As soon as he stood upright, his vision went dark and he squatted on the ground. It took him five or six minutes to recover. He only practiced deadlifts twice a week, so he couldn't afford to use such a radical breathing method. He exhaled when he pulled and inhaled when he released. It was so stable that there was no risk.

There are also people who practice CrossFit or functional training, and they will not stick to the rule of "exhale when exerting force". After all, many movements require both explosive power and cardiopulmonary rhythm. Inhale and exhale quickly as you please. As long as your core is stable and there are no hiccups, you can do it as comfortably as you want.

Beginners actually don’t need to struggle with this issue for too long. I have seen too many people stand in front of the dumbbell rack for five minutes, thinking about the breathing sequence over and over again, and forget how to do it when they think of the final action. It doesn't matter if your breathing rhythm is wrong when you first start practicing. Just make sure you don't hold your breath the whole time until you feel dizzy. Practice it three or five times and your body will naturally follow the movements to find the rhythm. If you really can't find it right, just make a small sound when exerting force and follow the feeling of exhaling. You're right.

In the end, fitness is a very individual thing, and universal rules are for ordinary people. If you just want to build some muscles and lose body fat, there will be no problem if you exhale according to the force. When one day you want to push the limit and compete, just adjust the breathing pattern that suits the goal. It is a real waste of time to always struggle with such basic issues and not use the equipment.