Newsletter 3: The Power of Breathing. What Elite Athletes Know That Most People Don't

Steph Curry's secret isn't his shot. It's his breath.

If you've ever watched Steph Curry play, you've noticed something unusual. He never seems to get tired. He runs constantly, for 40-plus minutes, at a pace that would exhaust most professional athletes, and he does it while making some of the most precise shots in NBA history.

The science behind it is not magic. It's breathing.

According to reporting in The New York Times (The Athletic, May 2025), elite athletes like Curry have made deep breathing a core part of their conditioning and performance practice. By training diaphragmatic and nasal breathing, Curry has reportedly been able to bring his heart rate below 80 beats per minute during a 90-second timeout, even after intense play. That kind of physiological control is not just physical. It is mental.

Nasal breathing, in particular, has attracted growing scientific attention. A 2017 study published by the National Institutes of Health found that nasal breathing significantly reduced hyperventilation during high-intensity exercise. Research cited in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine found it lowered heart rate and improved oxygen efficiency. Studies at UPMC have noted that nasal breathing can deliver up to 20% more oxygen to the blood compared to mouth breathing.

What athletes have known for decades, science is now confirming. Controlled breathing changes your state.

In boxing, nasal breathing has long been used not just for endurance, but for mental control. A boxer who controls their breath controls their composure. They don't panic under pressure. They stay present when the situation demands it most.

This is exactly what the Heart Breath in My Daily Method is built on. When you breathe slowly through your nose, you activate parts of the brain tied to emotion and memory. You slow the overstimulation of the amygdala, the part of your brain that triggers fear and anxiety. Your heart rate drops. Your mind clears. The "little brain" in your heart, which has its own neural network, begins to synchronize with your head.

You don't need to be a professional athlete to use this. You need three breaths.

In through the nose. Out through the mouth. Slowly. Count to four on the way in. Count down on the way out.

That's your starting point. That's what the science says. That's what the best in the world already know.

Now you do too.