Breathing during exercise may seem simple. After all, we breathe all of our lives, and usually don’t even think about it. But, during a workout, proper breathing techniques are vital to ensure an adequate amount of oxygen comes into your body, and waste gases are expelled.

Holding a breath during a workout is quite common, especially among people just returning to exercise after a long hiatus. Trainers and yoga instructors often have to tell clients to continue to breathe during sessions.

In everyday life, most people take shallow breaths that use just 10 to 15 percent of lung capacity. When carrying out any kind of workout, the human body requires more oxygen, and has more carbon dioxide and other waste gases to expel.

It is important to keep a steady rhythm to breathing during workout. While doing exercise, many people will tend to take in air too quickly or too slowly. In order to achieve an ideal breathing pattern, adapting air intake to particular exercises are vital.

Breathe deeply while stretching, either before or after exercise, can lead to a better workout. Drawing air in through the nose and excelling from the mouth is often effective.

Most schools of yoga recommend gently taking in air at the start of a pose, holding for a few seconds, and slowly exhaling through the mouth.

Lifting weights and other strength exercises often cause people to hold their breath. Remember to keep breathing. Some people prefer to exhale while lifting the weights, and inhaling as they return to position.

For cardio exercises like running and walking, take deep, regular breaths. When breathing in deeply, it is the stomach, and not the chest area, that will rise and fall. The choice of whether to breathe through the nose or mouth is largely a matter of personal preference.

When it comes to exercise, Pink Floyd had it right. “Breathe, breathe in the air.”