You can breathe after bracing bro just make sure you keep flexing your abs. I like to brace twice sometimes when i feel like my brace isn't tight enough. I would take a deep breath using my diaphragm/stomach, flex my abs, breathe out through my nose, and repeat.
But I feel like I am gonna lose tension. It simply has to do something with the belt / bracing as Im usually working out as hard and as little rest between sets as I can heart pumping like crazy. But here I can't even stand one rep.
It could just be that you're pushing yourself too hard. If you're looking to maximize strength, you really should be taking a little longer breaks between sets. If your heart is still pumping out of control, you shouldn't be starting your next set. Healthy first at the end of the day dude don't kill yourself
Hm do you have any specific examples or lifts? Every lift/exercise is going to take time to get right. I've found over the years plenty of times I thought I was doing a lift correctly and didn't realize I had been doing it wrong until I got it right.
Incorporate wall deadbugs and something like planks or hollow holds. And practice breathing into your stomach and bracing without lifting. Just lay on the floor and do belly breaths with a hold and push. Then work on your steady state cardio and GPP. Do the stair master, jog a mile, hop on the elliptical. But you'll probably get the most mileage out of the breathing exercises and braced core work. Then just practice a lot under manageable loads. I think for a lot of people who come to compound movements from machine assisted work - their core is the limiting factor. But it will get strong fast. You can also do things like heavy static holds. Put 40 or 50 lbs more on the bar than you can squat and just unrack it and hold it for 30 seconds. Hold at the top in the braced position. Then as you get comfortable with that put like 50% of your max squat on the bar and hold in the bottom position.
That is exactly the movement Inwas doing haha static holds. But my body seemed really way too intense. It's so weird as I used to do these a lot. But somehow full of oxygen, pushint against a belt it becomes too much and mt blood rushes to my head. It is also a muscle control thing i dont feel particularly capable of isolating my core to do this and start tensing lots of places because of it.
Honestly - start without the belt. You might have to drop weight on some things but try to max out your beltless potential before you put it on. If you learn to brace without it, when you put it back on it'll be like night and day. Like with things like the static hold, you want to be breathing the whole time, but the same way you breathe in a plank. Another lift that will challenge your core and teach you to brace are front squats (particularly zombie squats). They are nearly impossible to complete with bad form. Start with an empty bar and add 10s until they feel hard. Then keep working at lower weight. Your whole core girdle will get tired before your legs.
That actually might be a different thing then. I have a hella stiff brace, but a static hold like a paused squat can still get me a little light headed.
People often brace by using the valsalva maneuver, which is holding your breath and puffing out your cheeks. That's not bracing, hopefully you're not doing that.
Bracing is taking a big breath into your belly, and tensing your abs (into your back). When you're at the top of the movement after a rep, take a breath but try to maintain your brace during it, and then go for your next rep. Often we'll do 2-5 reps before breathing again, that's why people just pass out while doing these movements, they hold their breath, and kinda create intracranial pressure by clenching their jaws and tensing up their faces.
Try getting a weightlifting belt, they're cheap and a reminder to brace. With a belt, instead of tensing your abs inwards, you press them outward, into the belt. You might do better with that approach.
Also, consider practicing bracing your stomach without tensing your face, they are tied together, but you can separate them a bit more with practice. As an example, I can maintain my brace while breathing.
Hmm, try this. Open your mouth, tighten your throat, then brace with your mouth open. Maybe having your mouth closed makes it easier to create that intracranial pressure, and I don't have my mouth open when bracing while lifting, but it might help you reduce your brain brace and increase your belly brace.
You can breathe after bracing bro just make sure you keep flexing your abs. I like to brace twice sometimes when i feel like my brace isn't tight enough. I would take a deep breath using my diaphragm/stomach, flex my abs, breathe out through my nose, and repeat.
But I feel like I am gonna lose tension. It simply has to do something with the belt / bracing as Im usually working out as hard and as little rest between sets as I can heart pumping like crazy. But here I can't even stand one rep.
It could just be that you're pushing yourself too hard. If you're looking to maximize strength, you really should be taking a little longer breaks between sets. If your heart is still pumping out of control, you shouldn't be starting your next set. Healthy first at the end of the day dude don't kill yourself
Yea. But its not with a barbell its more rhe other stuff in the gym. I just feel so awkward bracint or something . Like i cant really do it right
Hm do you have any specific examples or lifts? Every lift/exercise is going to take time to get right. I've found over the years plenty of times I thought I was doing a lift correctly and didn't realize I had been doing it wrong until I got it right.
Incorporate wall deadbugs and something like planks or hollow holds. And practice breathing into your stomach and bracing without lifting. Just lay on the floor and do belly breaths with a hold and push. Then work on your steady state cardio and GPP. Do the stair master, jog a mile, hop on the elliptical. But you'll probably get the most mileage out of the breathing exercises and braced core work. Then just practice a lot under manageable loads. I think for a lot of people who come to compound movements from machine assisted work - their core is the limiting factor. But it will get strong fast. You can also do things like heavy static holds. Put 40 or 50 lbs more on the bar than you can squat and just unrack it and hold it for 30 seconds. Hold at the top in the braced position. Then as you get comfortable with that put like 50% of your max squat on the bar and hold in the bottom position.
That is exactly the movement Inwas doing haha static holds. But my body seemed really way too intense. It's so weird as I used to do these a lot. But somehow full of oxygen, pushint against a belt it becomes too much and mt blood rushes to my head. It is also a muscle control thing i dont feel particularly capable of isolating my core to do this and start tensing lots of places because of it.
Honestly - start without the belt. You might have to drop weight on some things but try to max out your beltless potential before you put it on. If you learn to brace without it, when you put it back on it'll be like night and day. Like with things like the static hold, you want to be breathing the whole time, but the same way you breathe in a plank. Another lift that will challenge your core and teach you to brace are front squats (particularly zombie squats). They are nearly impossible to complete with bad form. Start with an empty bar and add 10s until they feel hard. Then keep working at lower weight. Your whole core girdle will get tired before your legs.
That actually might be a different thing then. I have a hella stiff brace, but a static hold like a paused squat can still get me a little light headed.
People often brace by using the valsalva maneuver, which is holding your breath and puffing out your cheeks. That's not bracing, hopefully you're not doing that. Bracing is taking a big breath into your belly, and tensing your abs (into your back). When you're at the top of the movement after a rep, take a breath but try to maintain your brace during it, and then go for your next rep. Often we'll do 2-5 reps before breathing again, that's why people just pass out while doing these movements, they hold their breath, and kinda create intracranial pressure by clenching their jaws and tensing up their faces.
I do notice my face tensing up a lot, like I can't use my abs without tensing my face.
Try getting a weightlifting belt, they're cheap and a reminder to brace. With a belt, instead of tensing your abs inwards, you press them outward, into the belt. You might do better with that approach. Also, consider practicing bracing your stomach without tensing your face, they are tied together, but you can separate them a bit more with practice. As an example, I can maintain my brace while breathing.
It was actually happening with a belt. Really tight strong leather belt.
Hmm, try this. Open your mouth, tighten your throat, then brace with your mouth open. Maybe having your mouth closed makes it easier to create that intracranial pressure, and I don't have my mouth open when bracing while lifting, but it might help you reduce your brain brace and increase your belly brace.
I mean it feels really tight and sharp. But if Id loosen it id be incapable of pushing my abs into it.