Barkley Marathon First Finisher, Ihor Verys, Shares His Secret Weapon - Nasal Breathing | OA Podcast

Whilst in Las Vegas, Patrick McKeown met with Ultramarathon Runner and Barkley Marathon First Finisher, Ihor Verys.
One of Verys' trademarks - a secret he's honed during training - is his ability to breathe through his nose in everything but the most extreme efforts. It helps him regulate his exertion.
Verys who met Patrick recently for lunch in Las Vegas learned his secret breathing techniques from Patrick's book, The Oxygen Advantage. Verys now calls the book one of his ultrarunning bibles.
This is a must listen episode for all runners!

[@GTE_Channel]

I keep being amazed that nose breathing is still a niche thing between runners. A lot of people I know still think you can inhale more through your mouth. I've let them read The Oxygen Advantage, and still they remain sceptic. But when someone says to eat 100grams of carbs per hour to get faster, they do this without thinking...

[@shelleystevenson2490]

Wow, what a great inspiration Ihor is, this was so interesting. I'm not a runner, I walk and do yoga daily (have Patricks excellent book Breathing for Yoga) and take these activities seriously. Patrick has taught me not to deep breathe, (which is common in modern yoga) and it all makes sense. Thank you for this wonderful podcast.

[@OxygenAdvantage]

Thank you Shelley. I'm glad to hear the book has been helpful. Patrick

[@scoobtoober2975]

Thanks! It always makes sense when you compare the things we focus on vs what's ignored. Update: my daughter is breathing way better. It's taken a year for her to transition from mouth breathing to more often nasal breathing. And a milestone, last night i said i'd give her $100 for mouth taping and keep it on through the night. She did. She couldn't before, the flow was so poor, breath right strips, expanders in the nostril, menthol chest rub, didn't help. Windows cracked at night definitely help. Just a little. She did get a palate expander, that definitely has to be part of the help. I get stuffy if i don't open one for a bit. She was constantly infected in the nose and throat, sick, coughing, throat clearing sound (20 times an hour) kept the tonsils/adenoids swolen, it was a built in habit. THANK YOU. I had her habits and didn't nasal breath until a year and a half ago, i'm 40. I"m way less sick. 6 months stretch now for all of us. We always said, kids are sick from school so we are. NOPE. they are way less sick too, duration is shorter too. It was about every 2 months. We'll see how it goes. Mouth taping for me has been life changing. Rarely do i get stuffy. If i do, open a window or go outside. Instant relief. Or slow breathing with pauses. BOX breathing at 10 10 10 10 to work up to that is super meditative and mind calming. And nasal opening. Buteyko is a god. I've known a fair amount of asthmatics. One of our inlaws has a terrible time. Trying to get them to change food and nasal breathing is something they have to find on their own. I ignored my wife 3 years ago when she tried to get me to read "breath" i said that is witchcraft non-sense. Boy was i wrong. I'm a shot distance runner, but pretty regular few miles each night. Tip of the day, shirt off. Try it. Short minimal shorts. Barefoot shoes. Breathing seems to be easier. Nitric oxide is higher, but that's my N=1 experiment. Wim hoff might say so. My wife coached basketball this winter and had the kids all nasal breath for some drills and run backwards. :) kneesovertoes Thanks for the running tips. I need all the help i can get.

[@OxygenAdvantage]

Thanks very much for your detailed post. I'm very glad to hear that your daughter is breathing better. Well done. Patrick

[@scoobtoober2975]

@@OxygenAdvantage It truly is a blessing. Your the best. A true life saver.

[@Dakota.Covers]

Oxygen Advantage and knees over toes are both amazing.

[@claytontalbot7527]

Great interview and a pleasant surprise to see one of my favourite runners is a proponent of Oxygen Advantage!

[@marchello2177]

Excellent and very valuable interview. Thank you very much!

[@scoobtoober2975]

Part of our breathing disfunction is from watching movies. Hollywood definitely uses mouth open as suspense And mouth closed as serious, calm or collected. We see it as an impact to the emotion we're suppose to feel.

[@olicodes]

Wow. I've read Patrick's books and I'm an aspiring ultra runner... I knew of Ihor because of his incredible Barkley Marathons finish, but never imagined this! Spread the word! A question for Patrick: What proportion of the adaptations associated with fitness/VO2 max can really be attributed to more efficient, or improved breathing as one does more training over time?

[@Dakota.Covers]

Fantastic episode!

[@babysittinginvail]

Great interview!

[@jean-lucdjukanovich4371]

👍

[@scoobtoober2975]

Frog in hot water. He doesn't know it's too hot until it's too late. At least that the story. Assuming something is ok. Is based on what. I'm now into shock impact and increasing nitric oxide. Hand slaps, taps, shakes, smash your stomach like an ape. It makes you light headed. I wonder why ;) all areas of the body. Dry brushing whole body. Sauna. Cold therapy. All things. Hormesis of course.