How to Get a Second Wind

We’ve all been there. Muscles burning from exhaustion, lungs begging for air. You have to continue but your body feels like it’s shutting down. How do you do it? You NEED your second wind!

Why Do We Get a Second Wind

When you get your second wind, you get a burst of energy and can finally breathe again. Why does this happen? A second wind is the shifting of metabolic pathways in the body from burning just carbohydrates to also burning fat. We get a second wind for two reasons.

First, carbohydrates (the body’s main source of energy) are mainly stored in muscles, and when these stores are depleted, you need the secondary metabolic pathway to kick in and burn fat to obtain more energy.  Second, during intense exercise when the body cannot burn carbohydrates fast enough to keep up with the energy requirements from the exercise, the body will turn on and run simultaneously the secondary metabolic pathway to also burn fat for additional energy.

How Do We Get a Second Wind

In both cases, the body starts to use oxygen more efficiently to help reduce fatigue along with giving you an additional supply of energy. Research shows that the second wind usually occurs around five to ten minutes into fatigue. So…in order to get your second wind, all you have to do is hold out for five to ten minutes longer when you start feeling fatigued. Five to ten minutes is all it takes for you to step past your boundaries and into your TRUE potential.

Get comfortable stepping outside your comfort zone, let go of your own doubt, and trust in your body to do what it’s supposed to do. Five to ten minutes is all it takes.