Bracing means taking a big breath, holding it, and tightening your trunk muscles around it so your midsection stays stiff under the bar. Research shows this breath-hold (the Valsalva manoeuvre) raises the pressure inside your abdomen, which may help keep your spine stable and your trunk rigid. Heads up: holding your breath under heavy load also sharply raises blood pressure for a moment. If you have high blood pressure, ACSM advises asking your health care provider before you start or step up vigorous exercise. It also advises people with high blood pressure not to strain or hold their breath when lifting.
Breathe in all around
Before you unrack or pull, take one deep breath through your nose and mouth and fill your whole trunk: front, sides and lower back. Not just your belly, and not up into your chest and shoulders.
your waist getting wider all the way around.
Brace hard
Hold the breath and push your trunk outward against it, into your lower abs, sides and lower back. Don't suck your belly in.
a stiff, pressurized ring around your middle.
If you wear a belt, push your trunk out into the belt on all sides. The belt gives you something to brace against. It doesn't do the bracing for you.
pressure against the belt at your sides and back, not just at the front.
Hold & release
Keep the breath and the brace through the hardest part of the rep. Let the air out once you're past it or back at the top.
the pressure held steady from the start of the rep until you're past the hard part.
Take a fresh breath and brace again before every rep. Keep each hold short. Don't string several reps together on one breath.
the same breath-and-brace routine before every rep.
Feel it
Your waist expands all the way around, not just at the front. Your trunk feels stiff enough that the bar doesn't fold you, and that stiffness holds from the start of the rep until you're past the hard part.
Fix-its
- You breathe into your chest and shoulders Your shoulders rise and the breath stays high. Keep your shoulders still and breathe low, into your sides and lower back.
- You breathe only into your belly If only your belly pushes forward, your lower back can over-arch. Aim for 360°: feel your sides and lower back expand as well.
- You suck your belly in Pulling in is the opposite of bracing. Push out against the breath, and against your belt if you wear one.
- You brace late, or let go mid-rep Breathe and brace before the bar moves. Hold it until you're past the hardest part, not just for the first half of the rep.
- You feel dizzy or light-headed Your holds are probably too long, or you're doing several reps on one breath. Shorten them and re-breathe every rep. If it keeps happening, stop the set.
Drill
- 90/90 breathing: lie on your back with your hips and knees bent at 90° and your feet up on a bench or wall. Breathe slowly into your sides and lower back. Do a few minutes before you train.
- Standing brace check: stand with your hands on your sides, just above your hips. Breathe in, then brace. You pass if your waist pushes your hands outward, not just your belly forward.
- Warm-up sets: breathe and brace before every rep of every warm-up set, so the routine is automatic by your working sets.
- Belt practice (if you use one): set it snug but loose enough that you can still take a full breath. Practise pushing out into it on all sides with light weight.
Sources
- Hackett & Chow — The Valsalva maneuver: its effect on intra-abdominal pressure and safety issues during resistance exercise, J Strength Cond Res (2013)
- Blazek et al. — Systematic review of intra-abdominal and intrathoracic pressures initiated by the Valsalva manoeuvre during high-intensity resistance exercises, Biology of Sport (2019)
- MacDougall et al. — Arterial blood pressure response to heavy resistance exercise, J Appl Physiol (1985)
- JuggernautAI — Squat Pillar 2: Breathing and Bracing
- ACSM Exercise is Medicine — Being Active When You Have Hypertension (Rx for Health handout)
Last checked 2026-10-25.