The 100 Mile Ruck webpage is almost ready. The folks at HHPF plan to have it up by Wednesday. I’ll send you a super quick email when I hear it’s ready.
In the meantime, here is this week’s dose of breathing science.
Circulating nitric oxide is suppressed in obstructive sleep apnea and is reversed by nasal continuous positive airway pressure
This study found that:
Obstructive sleep apnea was inversely correlated with nitric oxide
Meaning that, as OSA indices increased, NO decreased
And as NO decreased, blood pressure increased
However, just one night of nasal CPAP restored NO to normal levels.
We know from previous studies that inhaled NO can have positive impacts throughout the whole body. And we also know that the nasal cavity is warehouse for NO. Together, these results suggest that the nasal CPAP machine might be restoring NO concentrations by simply encouraging nasal breathing during sleep.
Obviously, there is more to it than that, as CPAP machines do a lot more than just promote nasal breathing. But, I think a key take home message from this study is: Breathe through your nose at night.
Read the full summary to learn more.
In good breath,
Nick
P.S. How the rucksack will feel by mile 50:
