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The habit of “leading” with the breath is a massive component of basic health and reflex retraining work in Combat Systema. It allows student to massively increase their endurance, calm their emotions and lower the stresses exerted upon their bodies. In combative applications however it is not always a viable option. Leading is typically used in those instances where a degree of preparation is possible (i.e. you are under a much larger opponent and about to perform a sudden explosive movement to escape, you are at a distance and about to enter with a blitz of strikes, etc.). The fifth breath principle, breathing from the body, can be thought of as the combative alternative to leading.

Combative stresses can be sudden and ballistic, like a hard strike to the body or a sudden stacking and compression of the body during a fall or a bout of grappling. In these instances, there is no time to “lead” with the breath. The body, when free of excess tension or fear, will automatically resolve this issue by accommodating the incoming force by exhaling. A subject who is frozen with fear, for example, will often reflexively hold in their breath when getting struck, compounding the effects of the force. With correct training, they can be taught to allow the force to push the air from their body, exhaling in a degree that is proportionate to the power that is being received.

When the body is compressed or twisted by movement, like a leg lift, bending forward, or bringing the knee towards the chest, the body should similarly exhale to permit the range of motion. A very common error of many practitioners is to hold their breath to some degree, particularly during ground flow and rolling work. While leading can be a helpful first step in educating the body to feel the importance of exhaling during compression, movements must be built up to faster and more ballistic levels so that the body can learn to release the pressure more quickly.

EX: While balancing in a shoulder stand or leg lift (as illustrated above), practice slowly lifting your legs up and away from your body while inhaling, then release your legs, dropping your knees loosely to either side of your face as you exhale. Repeat this, inhaling as you slowly open the body and exhaling sharply as you suddenly collapse.

Compression will cause a responsive body to exhale.

Leg lifts are a good example of a solo breath compression exercise.

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Exhalation during compression is the next important breathing hurdle after leading, but it is only part of the equation. An equally essential and much more over-looked component is the idea of natural inhalation during the expansion of the body. If deformation causes breath to be driven from the body, a return to form should also cause the breath to be effortlessly drawn back into the lungs. Think of a sponge. When a sponge is squeezed, water is driven out of it. In exactly the same way, when our bodies are compressed, twisted or struck, the air we carry in our lungs should be sharply pushed from the lungs. It is important to recognize that this is occurring from the external force or motion and not by our intentions. Unlike leading with the breath, which is fully conscious, we are not talking about an intentional effort here. The reaction that is required is too quick to be preconceived. It must simply be allowed to happen. Trying to will it or consciously add to it will only add stress to the process and either delay it or reduce its effectiveness. Returning to our sponge analogy, when a sponge is released and allowed to return to form, the sponge will naturally absorb any water that it touches, sucking it back into its membrane. Another good example of this principle at work is an empty plastic bottle in the water. If you place the bottle under the water and squeeze it, it will expunge any air or water that is in it, exactly proportionate to the force that is exerted on it. When you release the bottle and allow it to return to form, it will suck water back into it. In exactly the same way, when the body is allowed to return to form and when the trunk realigns itself, the body should naturally suck oxygen back inside without the need for a conscious assistance. This occurs naturally in a body that is relaxed and free from fear but tension and the breath holding it can involuntarily spawn can interfere with this naturally efficient process from occurring. Initially, this will seem counter-intuitive. We are often so shackled by tension that we cannot feel the correct flow of our breath.

EX #1: Lay on your back. Begin by leading with the breath and slowly draw your knees in as close to your chest as high as they will come. Hold the knees high for a moment with your lungs comfortably full. Again, there should be no strain in the face or body as you hold your breath. Now, again leading with the breath, slowly exhale and elongate the legs back towards the ground. Perform this 5-10 times. Now that the body is warmed up, repeat the actions as quickly as you can. This time, instead of leading with the breath, draw the knees in towards your chest rapidly, allowing the compression to push the exhale from your lungs. Seek to keep your exhale comfortable, subtle and proportionate to the compression you feel on your lungs. Again, hold the lungs empty for a second then immediately release your legs and allow them to drop back fully open an elongated to the floor. Allow this action to instantly suck the air back into your lungs. As you continue to repeat this exercise, you will often become amazed by just how little force (and actual breathing) is needed to fuel the motion.

EX #2: Lay on your back. Breathing however you wish, slowly roll from your back to your side to your stomach. Remain there for a moment and roll back in the reverse direction. Once you have repeated this a number of times, try rolling all the way through (from your back, to your right side to your stomach and continue through onto your left side to end up on your back again. You will have performed one complete “spindle” roll).

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As you evolve this work, try continuing to roll in this manner with minimal energy. Imagine starting the roll from different parts of the body as if you were being pulled by a string. For example, imagine being pulled by the face first, then the sternum, then the hips, the knees and the feet. Explore how many different ways you are able to initiate this motion.

After some exploration, continue to evolve this work by adding a focus on breathing. Initially, think of leading with the breath, inhaling 10-15% of your inhale before you initiate the movement and exhaling 10-15% before you return.

Next, we will add a mechanical demand on the body. Laying on your back, draw both knees slowly into your chest and hold them in place for a moment. As you slowly release them and straighten your legs back out, enter into the spindle roll, rolling onto your hip and then your stomach. As you get more comfortable, you may wish to roll all the way through back onto you back, but begin slowly. Simply by compressing the knees into your chest you will change your breathing capacity and focus and you may experience a huge decrease in power initially.

Finally, evolve to bringing those knees into your body quickly and ballistically. Start by laying on your back only, plunging the knees into your chest and allowing them to force the exhale out of your body for you. Explore this for a few minutes, discovering how little assistance is required to exhale. Let the compression exhale for you. As you improve your feel for this action, plunge the knees into your body to trigger your exhale and allow the natural elongation and opening of the body immediately after it to lead you into spindle. This action is exactly like the 4-cycles of a car engine. There is an intake of fuel. The fuel is compressed by a piston. The compressed fuel is ignited creating a burst of power and the exhaust is expelled. Intake, compression, power, exhaust. We inhale as we lay on our back. We compress during the fraction of the second in which we ballistically plunge the knees up and into the chest. This loads the body with power, particularly the naturally elasticity sleeping in our connective tissue and our body naturally exhales the waste from our mouth. As we are launched into our spindle roll, the opening and elongation of our body naturally sucks fresh oxygen into our lungs, preparing us for our next action.

There are a number of simple exercises that can be used to explore an understanding of breathing through the compression and realignment of the body. The simple variations outlined above lay an essential foundation for optimizing breath integration during the dynamic of combat, and teach us how to absorb impact as well as how to use the inevitable postural fluctuations demanded by movement to fuel explosive, efficient movement.