Why Everyone Makes Fun of Breath Coaching Until They Try It

I had a conversation with a new client the other day who was experiencing something I hear about frequently: negative peer pressure around breath coaching.

She mentioned how her friends and colleagues thought she was silly for investing in breath coaching. Of course, they said: "I breathe every day—why would I need any help breathing?"

Here's the thing: it seems that everyone who has focused on their breathing has heard this exact pushback before. And when she told me this story, it made me realize something both frustrating and comforting about who actually seeks out breath coaching—and why so many people miss out on its benefits.

The Two Groups Who "Get It"

In my experience coaching people's breathing, there are really only two groups that become interested:

Group One: People with Serious Problems

Those dealing with:

• Anxiety disorders
• Sleep apnea
• Long haul COVID symptoms
• Chronic stress
• Respiratory conditions
• Recovery from illness

These people are desperate for solutions. They've tried other approaches, and breathing work offers hope where nothing else has worked.

Group Two: Elite Athletes

The second group couldn't be more different. They are elite athletes who understand that breathing better makes the extra 1% difference that leads to huge performance gains. They're looking for every possible edge, and breath work is proven to provide it.

The Middle Group: Missing the Point

It's only the people in between these two groups who don't recognize the benefits they could achieve. They're not sick enough to be desperate, not elite enough to be looking for micro-optimizations. So they dismiss breath coaching as unnecessary—or even silly.

But here's the reality most people miss: Just because you don't see something doesn't mean it isn't there.

The Breathing Continuum

Everyone falls somewhere on a continuum between those who are sick and elite athletes. So just because you don't fall into either camp—or at least you don't realize that you do—doesn't mean improving your breathing wouldn't benefit you.

Think about it this way: If elite endurance athletes can benefit from breath work, you surely can too. I can't imagine you regularly feel less breathless or stressed than they do.

The Benefits Are Universal

Breath coaching isn't just for:

• Professional athletes
• People with medical conditions
• Olympians and competitors
• Those in crisis

It's for anyone who:

• Wants to reduce daily stress
• Seeks better sleep quality
• Wants improved athletic performance at any level
• Wishes to increase focus and mental clarity
• Desires better recovery between workouts
• Aims to manage stress more effectively

The tools that help Olympians win gold are the same tools that can help you:

• Sleep better tonight
• Handle a stressful work presentation
• Recover faster after your workout
• Stay calm under pressure
• Perform better in your sport (whatever level that is)

Why the Skepticism Exists

The pushback makes sense when you think about it. Breathing is so fundamental, so automatic, that most people assume they've mastered it. But ask yourself:

• Do you assume you've mastered running because you can walk?
• Do you assume you've mastered cooking because you can make toast?
• Do you assume you've mastered fitness because you can walk up stairs?

Breathing is the same. Just because you do it automatically doesn't mean you're doing it optimally.

The Automatic Does Not Mean Optimal

Your body breathes automatically to keep you alive. But staying alive and thriving are two different things. You can survive breathing poorly. But you can thrive breathing well.

Consider these scenarios where automatic breathing becomes problematic:

• Mouth breathing is automatic—but nasal breathing is better
• Shallow chest breathing is common—but diaphragmatic breathing is optimal
• Rapid, stressed breathing feels normal—but slow, controlled breathing is powerful

The point? Your body defaults to "good enough." But with training, you can upgrade to "optimal."

The Challenge: What Your Breathing Actually Tells You

Still think your breathing is fine just the way it is? Let's test it.

Here's a challenge you can do right now:

The Breath Hold Walk Test

1. Stand up in a safe space
2. Exhale completely through your mouth
3. Hold your breath (pinch your nose if helpful)
4. Start walking—count your steps
5. Walk as far as you can until you have an urge to breathe that you can't suppress
6. Count your total steps

What Your Results Mean

• Under 30 steps: Your breathing capacity is significantly limited
• 30-50 steps: Room for substantial improvement
• 50-60 steps: Below average for trained individuals
• 60-80 steps: Decent capacity, with clear room for improvement
• 80-100 steps: Good breathing capacity
• 100+ steps: Excellent capacity (rare without training)

Why This Matters

This test reveals your tolerance to CO2 (carbon dioxide), which is arguably more important than your oxygen capacity for overall health and performance. The better your CO2 tolerance:

• The less breathless you feel during exercise
• The better your anxiety management
• The better your sleep quality
• The higher your stress resilience
• The longer you can maintain performance

If you scored under 60 steps, imagine what your life would be like if you could double that number.

Would you:

• Feel less stressed day-to-day?
• Sleep better at night?
• Perform better in your workouts?
• Recover faster between efforts?
• Handle pressure situations more calmly?

The answer is almost certainly yes.

The Professional Athlete Mindset

Here's what professional athletes understand that most people don't:

If something is fundamental to performance, it's worth optimizing.

They don't say:

• "I already run, why would I need running form analysis?"
• "I already eat, why would I need a sports nutritionist?"
• "I already breathe, why would I need breath coaching?"

They say: "If I can improve this fundamental capacity by even 1%, what does that mean over a long career?"

And the answer is: massive gains.

A 1% improvement in breathing efficiency becomes:

• Better performance during high-intensity moments
• Faster recovery between efforts
• Less perceived exertion
• Better stress management
• Improved mental clarity under pressure

That 1% compounds over time. Over a season. Over a career. It becomes the difference between good and great.

You Don't Have to Be Elite to Think Like One

You don't have to be an Olympian to benefit from an Olympic mindset. The same tools, techniques, and principles that help elite athletes win championships can help you:

• Win your morning commute (less stress)
• Win your workout (better performance)
• Win your workday (increased focus)
• Win your sleep (faster recovery)

The only question is: are you willing to think like an elite performer about your breathing?

Getting Past the Peer Pressure

Let me address what my client was experiencing—the social pressure and skepticism around breath coaching.

Here's the uncomfortable truth: Most people won't understand until they experience it themselves.

That's okay. You don't need their permission to optimize your breathing. You don't need their validation to improve your performance.

Here's what happens to people who dismiss breath coaching:

• They remain stuck in their stress patterns
• They miss performance gains they could be making
• They struggle with things they don't have to struggle with
• They limit their potential unnecessarily

But here's what happens to people who invest in their breathing:

• They sleep better
• They perform better
• They recover faster
• They handle stress more effectively
• They feel more in control of their body and mind

The Bottom Line

The people who make fun of breath coaching fall into two camps:

1. Those who haven't tried it (and won't until they're desperate or elite)
2. Those who don't realize they're on the breathing continuum somewhere between sick and elite

Don't let the skepticism of others prevent you from exploring one of the most powerful tools for performance, health, and wellbeing.

Try the 60-step challenge.

If you can't do it, that's valuable information. If you can, imagine how much better you'd feel with even more capacity.

The question isn't whether breath coaching is silly. The question is whether you're willing to continue leaving performance, health, and wellbeing gains on the table when breathing training could help you access them.

Your friends can dismiss it. Your colleagues can laugh at it. But while they're stuck in mediocre breathing patterns, you can be optimizing one of the most fundamental aspects of your physiology.

So shoot me a text and let me know your 60-step challenge results. Let's have an honest conversation about your breathing capacity—and what it could become with dedicated practice.

Because here's what I've learned working with thousands of people: Nobody who takes breath coaching seriously regrets it. But many people who dismissed it later wish they hadn't waited.

Choose optimization over automatic. Choose deliberate over default. Choose the 1% improvements that compound into major gains.

Your future self—whether dealing with stress, competing in your sport, or just living your best life—will thank you.

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Ready to prove the skeptics wrong?

For Athletes: Take the 60-step challenge and discover where your breathing capacity truly stands. Book a consultation to assess your current performance and create a training plan that eliminates breathing as a limiting factor.

For Strength & Conditioning Coaches: Your athletes need every advantage. Learn how to integrate breath coaching into your programming and become the coach who optimizes what others overlook.