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BreathPlay CDs

The BreathPlay CDs provide breath-by-breath acousticoaching in a variety of tempos and breathing patterns. You'll hear hissing outbreath sounds and aahing inbreath sounds setting up a basic tempo beat. For instance, with the 5/2 breathing pattern (five steps out, two steps in) you'll hear "sss-sss-sss-sss-sss / aah-aah". You'll also hear, woven into the breathing patterns, the BreathPlay refrains, or voice-weaves, which help build the skills and reinforce the learning. When you first listen to these CDs you might simply appreciate having something pleasant to listen to while you breathe and move. Later, you'll appreciate it in a much deeper way, because you'll discover that the music becomes an important part of the learning process, helping you to recognize the rhythmic patterns of BreathPlay.

Marilyn Phillips is a Fort Worth cyclist. I helped her prepare for the Texas State road championships. She and her husband, Terry, tested an early beta version of the Zooming CD. They were on the bikes (Terry on rollers, Marilyn on a bike stand) for 65 minutes of the CD. I asked them to give me an estimated time when they were through, and after a brief discussion they agreed that it had been about 30 minutes. When they realized that their estimated time was less then half of the actual clock time, they were amazed.

Marilyn Phillips' email:

Just wanted to jot down a couple of thoughts about my experience of BreathPlay when we were working together . . .

In addition to the breath work, I found the pedaling techniques very helpful. I recall one that helped me grasp the nature of a truly "round" pedal stroke for the first time -- it involved the use of a towel held taut between my hands as I rotated them in a pedaling fashion. When I applied this idea to my actual pedal stroke, the increase in power was enormous.

When I was training for the state road championships, I remember working with the image of a bead on a string -- the bead representing my bike, and the imaginary string running through my top tube and extending ahead and behind into infinity. I used my outbreath to move my bike forward along the string. Don't remember all the details, but this image has stayed with me.

The most powerful experience by far was the one I related to you recently, of giving shape and color to the burning sensation in my thighs, then experimenting with changing the color and working with my outbreath to intensify the color or change the shape of the sensation. After a few minutes, I began to feel a warmth at the base of my spine, which progressed to a burning, and then a feeling of tingling (something like a very intense tickle) as it rose up my spine. I began to laugh, and the feeling of fatigue in my thighs was replaced by a surge of strength. I shifted up two gears and pedaled ferociously for several minutes.

I also remember a hill workout we did near Lake Joe Pool in Arlington. We chose a hill we call the "Gut Check," a steep climb that was always painful for me. I was thoroughly intimidated by that hill, and really dreaded riding it that day. I only remember that you were riding next to me coaching me in a 3/2 (or maybe a 2/1) breathing pattern, but you were also showing me how to alternately stiffen my arms and use the leverage I could create to climb more efficiently. I remember reaching the top of the hill, and turning onto a side street to continue climbing because I didn't want to stop. It was effortless.

I'll keep thinking and see what else comes up. So much of what you taught me has become second nature; I use it without thinking, every time I ride. Speaking of which, Terry and I were able to get out on the bike today for the first time in about a month. Hope you'll join us soon.

Ian,
I have Zoomed several times since receiving the CDs last week. I greatly appreciate the way the Zooming CD has refined my cycling technique, and I thoroughly enjoy it acoustically. There's a great satisfaction in feeling the coherence and balance the alternating breathing patterns bring to the work of pedaling.

I am currently using the Zooming CD sessions primarily as an active relaxation and recovery workout and I'll probably keep it low key until I getthe movements down. I'm using my beginning BreathPlay skills on my regular hill repeat workout. I start the climb with the 6/3 pattern from Zooming and go down through the breathing gearbox as the intensity of the effort demands it. I go from 6/3 to 4/3, then to 5/2 and finally to 3/2. Before I began working with Zooming, the climbs would take me about 9.5 minutes. Now that I'm bringing my new skills to the effort, my times are down to about 8.5 minutes.

I also used BreathPlay in a 1/2 Ironman race this weekend. I used a 3/2 breathing pattern on both the bike and run due to the intensity of the effort. I feel that BreathPlay was a great help in maintaining inner focus during the race, particularly on the run. I believe it contributed to my age group first place finish. I plan to incorporate BreathPlay in my Ironman California training during the next four weeks and during the race itself.

A.S.