How to control your breathing

I've noticed that I tend to suck down a SCBA bottle a lot faster then some of the other guys. I would say that I am still a rookie, even though I have all my certs, and have been on for about a year. My department trains with SCBA all the time, doing different drills and all that stuff. However when I do see a situation where you really need one, like a structure fire all hell break loose and I start breathing like a horse. I don't know if its the nerves or the excitement getting to me, but i've been looking for ways to control breathing and stay a little more relaxed while inside a structure. I believe that one of the problems is that my department hardly runs any structure fires, so its hard to train and figure out what to change. Do you guys have any advice on controlling your breathing?

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Permalink Reply by Nick Mitchell on April 26, 2012 at 5:37pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvEZDttqNNI

I have heard of this method before and it may be a better way to control your breathing. As many other guys have mentioned, it's about conscious efforts to control it. It's not always easy when you're in a fire working hard, but this method seems to be effective, however, I haven't put this into practice yet.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Spencer on April 29, 2012 at 10:47pm

That's funny... I'm known for my whistling while packed and working hard :-)

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Permalink Reply by Michael Piccoletti on April 30, 2012 at 10:36pm

Here's how I control my breathing inside a fire, or while training with an SCBA, and somehow I manage to hardly do any breathing at all apparently.

I look at it this way: When I put a mask on, I see two different views. Myself, inside a mask, and whats going on outside the face piece. When I first enter the structure, and plug in (most of the time on the front poach) I take that second (or what feels like a second or two, Its more than likely half a second or so) and separate these two in my mind. By doing this, I'm able to keep in the back of my head that my respiratory system is in a controlled environment, and there's no reason to get all crazy with breathing. This almost "Activates" my skip breathing. I haven't read through the past 2 pages of posts, but if someone did not explain skip breathing to you I'll make sure to come back and explain this process of saving air.

Next time you mask up, take a second, separate the two world of inside the mask, and outside the mask. See what it does for you. I have no idea why it works for me, but It makes me feel allot better about going places I would have otherwise have died already.

Another thing a new-er member told me helped them conserve air allot when they started going inside was "humming". On exhales, he hums lightly to himself and draw's it out smoothly so your not huffing and puffing. I never used it, and it's a technique I was explained awhile ago, but when I told him how to do it, and he started using it, He likes it and says it works.

How to control your breathing

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