All posts of James Fletcher

Breathing & Running

The ultimate guide to Breathing & Running (15 mins)  Up to 40% of runners experience shortness of breath which limits their performance while running. As breathing science continues to gain popularity, this has led to recent advancements in our knowledge of using different techniques to improve performance and make breathing easier. This short read provides […]

Breathing & Sex (The science)

  As a scientist, not an expert in pleasure and intimacy, this article will detail the physiology behind some of the various techniques that I will be discussing at the upcoming Hedone festival in Leipzig, “to liberate and share pleasure” Using my experience and my own personal journey heading towards this festival, I will be […]

What signals the body to breathe?

Breathing is a fundamental process that keeps us alive. Our bodies require oxygen (O2) to produce energy, and as a result of this energy production, carbon dioxide (CO2) is produced as a “waste product”. This intricate exchange between oxygen and carbon dioxide drives the functioning of our cells. The amount of CO2 in our bloodstream […]

Shallow Water Blackout Physiology wins everytime

In response to the number of people contacting me in recent times looking to improve their breath hold and I’ve lost count of the number of people wanting to get into spear-fishing or free-diving, I’m pushing this out to share.   Share it now! When you hold your breath there are a number of triggers […]

INTERMITTENT HYPOXIC TRAINING (IHT) PART 3/4

HYPOXIA & CENTRAL GOVERNOR Introduction The last blog introduced the different ways we can increase the stress to the body by reducing oxygen supply to the tissues. We call this desaturation, and we measure it with a pulse oximeter. By reducing the oxygen supply or energy to the cells this stress will cause adaptations which […]

Nobel Prize – How we sense Oxygen

Nobel Prize in Physiology – OXYGEN   This years Nobel prize in Physiology goes to 3 researchers who helped to reveal the way cells in the body respond too and sense oxygen availability. We now know the body senses Oxygen at the tissue level, and changes its physiology when there is a lack of supply […]

INTERMITTENT HYPOXIC TRAINING (IHT) PART 2/4

Intermittent Hypoxic Training The last blog introduced desaturation, which is where we intentionally reduce Oxygen (02) supply to the tissues at rest or when we are exercising. This is done in various ways, which is what we will explore this post.   Just a reminder: Red Blood Cells are the cars driving around our blood […]

Intermittent Hypoxic Training (IHT) Part 1/4

This is a four part series unpacking the “highs” and lows of what we know about hypoxic training. There is some great research out there about the ‘old’ ways and there are some fantastic new and innovative ways to gain some potential benefits from this training. (15 minutes reading time)   This type of training […]