Complete Guide to Bilateral Breathing: The Essential Technique for Triathletes

In freestyle swimming, most people have a naturally preferred breathing side—right or left. This may not be a problem in the pool, but in open-water racing, a swimmer who can only breathe on one side is like a race car driver who can only turn right: manageable on certain courses, but at a distinct disadvantage on a loop course. Bilateral breathing is not just an advanced technique—it is an essential survival skill for open water.

What is Bilateral Breathing?

Bilateral breathing is the technique of alternating your breathing to the left and right sides while swimming. The most common pattern is breathing every three strokes (3-stroke pattern), which naturally creates an alternating left-right breathing rhythm.

Common Breathing Patterns

Pattern	Description	Breathing Frequency per Side	Best Used For
Breathe every 2 strokes	Fixed single side	100% per side	High intensity, strong oxygen debt
Breathe every 3 strokes	Standard bilateral	50% per side	Technique practice, steady pacing
Breathe every 5 strokes	Extended bilateral	50% per side (less frequent)	Advanced practice, breath control
2-3-2-3 mixed	Variable bilateral	Irregular alternation	Flexible application in racing

Why Do Triathletes Need Bilateral Breathing?

1. Handling Waves from Different Directions

In open water, waves can come from any direction. If you can only breathe to the right, when waves come from the right, you will swallow a mouthful of seawater every time you turn your head. Bilateral breathing lets you choose to breathe on the side away from the waves, keeping your breathing smooth.

Real-world scenarios:

• Outbound leg, waves from the right: breathe to the left
• Return leg, waves from the left: breathe to the right
• No need to change your swimming line—just switch your breathing side

2. Correcting Stroke Asymmetry

Long-term single-side breathing leads to an asymmetrical swimming posture:

• Breathing side: shorter stroke length (rushing to turn the head to breathe)
• Non-breathing side: normal or longer stroke length
• Result: your swimming line drifts to one side, causing you to swim in a curve in open water

Bilateral breathing naturally balances the power and length of your strokes on both sides, allowing you to swim a straighter line without lane lines to guide you.

3. Mastering Bilateral Sightings

In open water, your sighting target may be ahead to the left or to the right. If you can only breathe to the right, you must make extra head movements when you need to look at a buoy on the left. Bilateral breathing lets you naturally scan both sides of your environment while breathing.

4. Tactical Advantages in Racing

• More flexible drafting positions: you can draft on either side while still watching the leader
• Handling mass-start collisions: if you get hit on one side, you can immediately switch to breathing on the other
• Maintaining contact with competitors: you can see rivals on both sides

5. Injury Prevention

Swimmers who breathe on only one side place greater rotational stress on the shoulder on their breathing side. Over time, this can lead to:

• Shoulder impingement syndrome
• Neck muscle imbalance
• Left-right core muscle imbalance

Bilateral breathing distributes the load evenly, reducing the risk of overuse injuries.

Common Obstacles to Learning Bilateral Breathing

Obstacle 1: Swallowing Water When Breathing on the Weak Side

This is the most common problem. When turning your head to the weak side, because the movement is not yet refined, your head position is off and your mouth begins to inhale below the water surface.

Solutions:

• Start on land: stand in front of a mirror and simulate the head-turning motion to both sides as in swimming
• Practice in the shallow end of the pool: stand and combine arm strokes with head-turning breathing
• Use a snorkel: lets you focus on your stroke without worrying about breathing
• Spend only 10 minutes per session practicing the weak side—don’t rush the process

Obstacle 2: Feeling Out of Breath with Every-3-Stroke Breathing

Transitioning from breathing every 2 strokes to every 3 strokes means reducing your breathing frequency by 33%. For swimmers whose cardiovascular fitness is still developing, this can indeed create a feeling of oxygen debt.

Solutions:

• Progressive transition: practice 3-stroke breathing during warm-up and cool-down first; still use 2-stroke breathing during high-intensity sets
• Mixed pattern: alternate 2-3-2-3, gradually increasing the proportion of 3-stroke breathing
• Slower pace practice: practice 3-stroke breathing at a pace 10-15% slower than normal to let your cardiovascular system adapt
• Exhalation training: focus on fully exhaling underwater—the more completely you exhale, the more air you can take in when you inhale

Obstacle 3: Stroke Technique Collapsing on the Weak Side

When breathing to the weak side, because your attention is focused on the breath, your stroke technique often breaks down: improper hand entry angle, unstable pull path, and excessive body rotation.

Solutions:

• Single-arm stroke drill: use only the weak-side arm to stroke, reinforcing muscle memory on that side
• Paddles drill: use hand paddles to increase water feel feedback on the weak side
• Video analysis: have a friend film you underwater to compare the stroke differences between your strong and weak sides

Six-Week Bilateral Breathing Training Plan

Week 1: Getting to Know Your Weak Side

Add to the warm-up and cool-down phases of every pool session:

During warm-up:
  4 × 25m weak-side single-side breathing (breathe to the weak side every 2 strokes)
  Focus: head rotation angle, mouth position, hand entry point

During cool-down:
  4 × 25m bilateral breathing every 3 strokes
  Pace: very slow, completely unconcerned with speed

Week 2: Building Muscle Memory

Technique set (add to every session):
  4 × 50m: first 25m strong-side breathing → last 25m weak-side breathing
  4 × 50m: full 50m bilateral breathing every 3 strokes
  Pace: slow, focused on technique

Week 3: Increasing Distance

Technique set:
  4 × 100m full distance bilateral breathing every 3 strokes
  20 seconds rest
  Pace: 5-10 seconds/100m slower than normal

Add to the endurance set:
  Use bilateral breathing for every third 100m during longer swims

Week 4: Increasing Pace

Pace set:
  8 × 100m @ steady pace, bilateral breathing the entire way
  Goal: close the gap to within 3 seconds/100m compared to single-side breathing
  15 seconds rest

Week 5: Mixed Patterns

Race simulation set:
  4 × 200m:
    First 100m bilateral breathing every 3 strokes (steady pace)
    Last 100m switch to every-2-stroke breathing on the needed side (accelerated simulation)
  30 seconds rest

Open-water practice:
  Complete 500m using bilateral breathing the entire way
  Switch breathing sides as needed based on wave conditions

Week 6: Integration and Automation

Test:
  1,500m continuous swim, bilateral breathing every 3 strokes the entire way
  Record your pace and compare with your Week 1 single-side breathing 1,500m
  Target gap: within 5 seconds/100m

Self-assessment:
  □ No more swallowing water when breathing on the weak side
  □ Stroke length feels symmetrical on both sides
  □ 3-stroke breathing no longer feels like oxygen debt
  □ Can switch breathing sides freely in open water

Advanced Application: Breathing Strategy in Racing

You Don’t Have to Breathe Bilaterally the Entire Race

This is an important concept: bilateral breathing is a skill, not a rule. In a race, your breathing strategy should be adjusted flexibly based on the actual situation.

High-intensity segments (start, sprint, position fighting):

• Breathe every 2 strokes, choosing your most comfortable side
• Oxygen demand is high; this is not the time to reduce breathing frequency

Steady-pace segments (mid-race cruising):

• Breathe every 3 strokes bilaterally
• Maintain stroke symmetry and swim a straight line
• Alternately scan both sides of your environment

Handling wave conditions:

• Continuously breathe on the side away from the waves (even if it’s your weak side)
• Switch to every-2-stroke breathing when necessary to ensure adequate oxygen

Approaching turn buoys:

• Increase breathing frequency
• Breathe toward the side of the turn buoy for easier sighting

Coordinating Breathing Rhythm with Stroke Rate

Pace (/100m)	Recommended Breathing Pattern	Rationale
< 1:20	Every 2 strokes + occasional 3 strokes	High intensity requires ample oxygen
1:20-1:40	Every 3 strokes (standard bilateral)	Balance efficiency and oxygen
1:40-2:00	Every 3 strokes or 3-5 alternating	Slower pace, lower breathing demand
> 2:00	Every 3 strokes	Ample breathing intervals

Breathing Responses for Special Situations

When You Swallow Water

Don’t panic and stop. Keep stroking, cough forcefully to clear the water on your next breath, then switch to breathing on the other side (since swallowing water is usually a positioning issue on one particular side).

When Goggle Leakage Affects Your Vision

Switch to breathing on the side with less water ingress, and use the breathing pause to quickly press on your goggles to clear the water with your fingers. If the flooding is severe, roll onto your back and float to deal with it.

When Extremely Fatigued

When you’re completely exhausted in the final 200 meters:

• Switch back to every-2-stroke breathing—no need to insist on bilateral
• Choose your most natural side and put all your attention on stroke efficiency
• At this point, “finishing” matters more than “perfect technique”

Exhaling Underwater: The Hidden Key to Bilateral Breathing

For many people, the real reason they can’t master bilateral breathing isn’t the head-turn technique—it’s incomplete exhalation underwater.

The Correct Exhalation Rhythm

[Face in the water] Continuously exhale slowly through nose and mouth (70% of the time)
    ↓
[Before turning the head] Accelerate exhalation to fully expel remaining air (20% of the time)
    ↓  
[Mouth clears the water] Inhale quickly (10% of the time)

Key point: The moment your mouth clears the water as you turn your head, you should be inhaling—there is no time to exhale first and then inhale. If you haven’t fully exhaled underwater, you’ll have to exhale before inhaling, which shortens your inhalation time and worsens the feeling of oxygen debt.

Exhalation Drills

Kickboard Exhalation Drill:

• Hold a kickboard and kick forward
• Submerge your face and slowly blow bubbles
• Turn your head to breathe every 3 seconds, alternating left and right
• Focus on feeling what “complete exhalation” is like

Conclusion

The learning curve for bilateral breathing may be steeper than you expect, but the rewards are greater than you can imagine. When you can freely switch your breathing between both sides, you haven’t just learned a technique—you’ve gained freedom in open water. You are no longer limited by wave direction, wind direction, or the direction of the race course. This freedom is what makes open-water swimming so captivating. Start with today’s training: spend 10 minutes each session practicing your weak side, and six weeks from now, you’ll thank yourself for the persistence.

Related Reading

• Freestyle Breathing Technique: Training Methods and Race Applications for Bilateral Breathing
• Improving Swimming Breathing Laterality: A Progressive Plan for Bilateral Breathing Training
• Advanced Open-Water Breathing Rhythm: The Tactical Value of Bilateral Breathing
• Learning Methods and Pros and Cons of Bilateral Breathing in Freestyle