Breathing, Hey. All straight forward stuff. Nothing to it. Yup right, whatever!. Well some basic understanding of how it all works and how to deal with uphills, high altitudes and the cold could really help improve your performance and make it a lot less painful on those ups.

(video courtesy of pctv1)

Most riders only use a small percentage of their lungs. This is because unlike swimmers, runners or other athletes we don't concentrate on our breathing, so not unsurprisingly we don't learn to maximize lung capacity.

So here are some tips to help you on the hills

• Use Your Diaphragm
  Push it in and out, not up and down. Then you are best able to access your full lung capacity because you are using your diaphragm muscle.
• Change Your Rhythm
  To gain really good control of your breathing, concentrate on a specific pattern of inhaling and exhaling, then coordinate it with our pedal stroke. For example breath in for half a stroke and out for half a stroke. For most people this means breathing out as they push down with the right leg. Change the pattern, exhale longer every few breaths. You'll automatically change your rhythm. Another examples is counting pedal strokes and so extend extend the length of the breath. Balance your breathing and pedaling. Play with any number of patterns and breathing technique.
• Breath Through Your Nose
  The amount of air you can inhale through your nose is limited, so it acts like a natural governor on your pace. Your performance capacity rises because when you use both your nose and mouth, efficiency improves. One caution: It is easy to overdo nasal breathing. Be careful or you might hyperventilate

So as you approach the climb, start to focus on your breathing. Take even, measured breaths and your body will stay relaxed. As the hill steepens, you back off slightly, adjusting your output to match the effort needed. Instead of tensing, you are fluid-even though the effort gets progressively more difficult. Because you are closely monitoring your breathing, you are also keenly aware of your heart rate. In this way, the hill seems to pass harmlessly under your wheels and you're already rolling towards the next one, breathing efficiently and recovering.

A note of warning for those riding in really cold weather. Whereas we can wear great modern advanced clothing that can protect us in all extremes there is a large surface area of the body which, although exposed directly to the air, is often not considered at all: the lungs. Think back to a long hard climb on a frosty day and you will remember the burning sensation as the cold air is drawn deep down. Just what are the consequences of hard aerobic activity in a cold environment. It's simple it's not good for you. chest problems asthma are all pointed too. Hence be sensible if really cold it can be sensible to slow your pace down a bit. Even wear a face mask or a bandanna over your mouth to warm the air up coming in..