I love breathing ladders. They are not only a great aerobic workout, but they are also a great way to take your weight lifting to the next level. Workouts that utilize a specific method of breathing while lifting weights to elicit an aerobic endurance training effect will not only test you aerobic and strength fitness, it will test mental toughness.
I always want to use a rep/load/movement structure that puts the athlete into a “panic breathing” situation to learn breath control and efficient recovery in a fixed/limited time frame. I also want to use a rep/load/movement structure to trick the athlete into a high volume/long duration workout. Since the goal in both cases is oxygen consumption and efficiency, I choose big, compound movements because the more muscles are working the higher the oxygen demand. I will then structure loads and reps depending on which of the two objectives (breath or volume) is predominant. Ultimately, both will be achieved.
This is one of the best ways train yourself to recover between exercises. It teaches you to breath from your stomach.
