Is There a Breathing Pattern in Backstroke?

Hey swimmers! This is coach Milo.

Welcome to another Q&A session where I answer questions from you all on the internet.

Today's question is:

"Is There a Breathing Pattern in Backstroke?"

Summary:

Milo confirms there is a breathing pattern in backstroke, though he describes it less as a rigid pattern and more as timing and rhythm. The core rule applies across all strokes: when you pull water, you blow air out, the same way you exhale lifting at the gym, hitting a tennis ball, or throwing a punch. In backstroke, you exhale as you pull, even blowing through the thin layer of water that can slide over your face and cap, and you inhale as the arm recovers. Because turnover is fast, the breath in happens right as the hand passes the ear and the breath out as the hand enters. Since one arm pulls while the other recovers, the inhale lands as the recovering arm crosses the ear. He closes with a ninja tip: holding your breath over the final five meters of a backstroke race can help you swim faster.

Answer:

Believe it or not, there actually is a breathing pattern in backstroke. It's not so much a pattern as it is timing, and it's rhythmic. We know that in any stroke, when you pull water, you're blowing air out. It's just like the gym, when you're pulling on something you're expelling air, or hitting a tennis ball, or in martial arts when you punch and some weird sound comes out, that's necessary, because when you work hard you blow air out. So in the backstroke, when you're pulling water you'll be blowing air out, and during that there may be an inch of water sliding over your face and cap, and you're blowing air through that water as it comes off. When you're pulling, you blow out, and when your arm is recovering, you breathe in. Since your arms move pretty quickly, the moment your hand is about passing your ear is when you breathe in, and when that hand enters, you blow out. Now, we're using both arms, one pulling and one recovering, so how can one arm breathe in and one breathe out? This is why at the end of that pull, once you've breathed out, the other arm is coming past your ear, and the very moment it passes the ear is when you're supposed to breathe in. It's cyclical, kind of like a dance, and it's rhythmic. In reality you're probably doing it right. Just know the breath in usually happens right as the arm crosses the threshold of the ear, and you blow out when you pull. And a ninja tip: at the very end of your backstroke race, for the last five meters, if you hold your breath you're going to be able to swim faster. Try it out, a lot of pro athletes are doing it today.