I don’t doubt that I have extremely mild asthma but definitely not the sensation I have been feeling. And as I said, inhalers do nothing to help. I have never really needed them either as I have never had an asthma attack.

That is an interesting correlation between hard exercise and the breathing issue. Sometimes on longer runs I get in a groove and find that my breathing is more relaxed and when I feel the need for a deep breath I can actually satisfy it. Almost like my lungs were tight and exercise loosened them up.

I will definitely give the Buteyko method a try. I’m at the point where I have given up on just time, exercise, and sleep healing it. So I am being much more proactive this year in finding methods to deal with it. I wanted to do all the medical testing to make sure there were no “red flags.” Now that I know there aren’t, I want to use more practical methods. I don’t want to be given pills or medications. I have even been interested in a more holistic approach. Maybe even Indian or Chinese methods.

Overall, I find that exercise is the best medium to keep it at bay. I have been trying to take notes after certain events to try to narrow down what helps and what doesn’t. So far, there really isn’t a rhyme or reason to any of it. It comes and goes with various things.

I have come across an article relating my symptoms to over breathing or chronic hyperventilation. I have a low resting heart rate and a pretty normal respiration rate. As tracked by my Garmin wrist watch, my resting heart rate is around an average of 50 bpm and respiration rate of 15 brpm asleep and 16 brpm awake. Garmin says the normal respiration rate for a resting adult is between 12 and 20 brpm. So I am right in the green zone according to that data. Keep in mind the wrist watch does not take super accurate readings of either heart rate or respiration rate. But it is interesting to look at the date over time to see any changes.

I will definitely give Buteyko a try and let you know if I feel a difference. Using Wim Hof, you inhale sharply 30-40 times and just let your breath go but not forcibly. On the last exhale you hold your breath. Once you feel the need to breathe, you take one last inhale and hold it for 10-15 seconds. Do this for three to four cycles. From what I understand, it is supposed to super saturate your cells with oxygen. The point is to put your mind in control over your body. It is the only form of breathing or mediation where I actually felt like I was in the “zone.” The problem for me is that I have a super active brain and pretty high anxiety. This makes it hard for me to focus and just be. I find the best time to do it is in the early morning when it’s still dark and the world is asleep.

Looking forward to getting some results!