How Breathing Exercises Help Drivers Stay Calm Racing

By Alessio Lorandi, 2013 CIK-FIA World Champion, KF-Junior. Updated on 15 October 2026.

Well, let’s be honest. Racing can be incredibly stressful, right? Especially before an important race, or during an intense fight on track.

And many drivers try to push their nerves away. But one of the best ways to deal with nerves and pressure is to control your breathing, with some simple breathing exercises using your diaphragm.

I’ve lived that state many times in my career, after 20 plus years between karting and formula cars. So in this guide I answer the questions I get asked the most about it, and I tell you exactly what I do.

Why do drivers feel stressed before a race?

I feel the stress comes from the tension that builds up because you want to do well. You don’t want to let anybody down. You want to prove wrong the people who doubted you. Maybe you want to bounce back from a race that wasn’t ideal.

Or you need a result to attract sponsors for next season, or to get scouts interested in you. Many, many reasons.

To be honest, I dealt with stress pretty well in karting. I was always driving as if it was a testing day, even when I was fighting for the world championship. I knew I didn’t have anything to lose. When people told me “come on, go win, go get P1”, I would just reply: “I’m just gonna give my best and then we’ll see what happens.” And to myself: “Listen Alessio, just go for it. It’s not gonna change your life.”

When I got to formula cars it was different. I was short of sponsors, I knew it was very hard to continue unless I won, and I was trying to be very careful to not crash the car. That acted as a handbrake on me. I noticed it.

So whatever you are stressed about, the goal is the same. Control it. More on this in why drivers crack under pressure.

How does breathing affect focus and reaction times?

Breathing slowly makes you a little bit less alert. And that is a good thing.

Because you don’t want to be too alert. There is a threshold, and you want to be right in the middle. I call it the activation sweet spot. You don’t want to be so sleepy that you are not activated at all. But you also don’t want to be too psyched, because if you drive over activated you are probably going to crash in the first corner. You drive in a desperate way.

Breathing is how you bring yourself back to the middle. In the middle you are more focused, you take quicker decisions, and your reactions are sharp. If you want to train the focus side too, read how racing drivers train focus and concentration.

How high does your heart rate go in a kart, and can breathing bring it down?

Higher than people think. When you drive a professional kart, in high grip with high power, you are at about 165 to 180 beats per minute. It’s almost as if you were running at full capacity.

And it starts before you drive. You may wake up in the morning at 55 or 60 bpm. Then you sit on the grid, the engine is not even started, and you are at 130 or 140. No physical exercise at all. That is the tension and the stress.

So if you are calm and you don’t crack under pressure, I feel you naturally bring your heart rate down by 10, 15 or even 20 beats per minute. That’s huge. The other part is being fit, and I explain that in endurance training for racing drivers and karting fitness 101.

What breathing exercise should a racing driver use?

The one I do most of the times is the so-called box breathing.

It goes like that:

1. Breathe in for 5 seconds.
2. Hold for 5 seconds, with your lungs extended.
3. Breathe out for 5 seconds.
4. Hold for 5 seconds, without air in your lungs.

Then you start again. The whole cycle is 20 seconds, so in a minute you do three breathing cycles. That is a lot slower than you normally breathe, and that is the point.

I do it with 5 seconds. You can also do it with 10 seconds if you want it more extreme. But start with 5, it is more beginner friendly.

If you want to geek out on it, there are tons of different breathing exercises out there. But I don’t want to give you too much information. Box breathing is pretty good.

Is there a simpler breathing drill than box breathing?

Yes. Instead of 5, 5, 5 and 5, you just breathe in for 10 seconds and breathe out for 10 seconds. No pause after you breathe in, no pause after you breathe out.

It’s a bit more simple. But it is still a 20 second cycle, and still three cycles per minute.

So if the holds feel like too much, start with this one.

Can breathing slow down an overactive mind before a race?

Yes, you bet. It’s pretty much the reason why we do it.

Think about it. You are sitting in the kart waiting for the green flag. Instead of thinking about video games or what you are going to eat for dinner, or worse, “am I going to crash, are my parents going to be mad at me, am I going to lose the sponsors”, you channel your attention to your breathing. And if your attention is on your breath, your brain is not going to make you think about the negative things.

With kids there is one more thing. A lot of the stress comes from the environment. I understand it’s not an easy job for parents, they feel they have to do something if the kid is distracted. But it’s a very thin line. Maybe the coach, maybe the mechanic can put a bit of pressure. The parents should always be loving figures. If a kid feels the love depends on the result, he gets afraid of making mistakes, and that is a complete handbrake for performance.

What should you do in the five minutes before the green flag?

You may have to get into the kart about five minutes before, and sit there waiting. That is the moment you really need to relax yourself.

When I was 8, 9, 10 years old, I used to pray in that moment. Then I started doing something else, and I still do it whenever I go racing. I close my eyes, I take big breaths in and breathe out, and while doing so I visualize the formation lap and the first corners of the first lap. Where I am on the grid, who is in front, who is on my side.

You can see it in the TV footage of my past races: visor almost fully closed, eyes closed, breathing, and visualizing the perfect lap and the start.

My routine today is reaction lights, some stretching on a yoga mat, a sip from my drinking bottle, the toilet, a couple of jumps on the pre-grid before I get in the kart. Then in the kart, visor halfway closed, eyes closed, visualizing. A routine like this becomes like a password for your focus. More of it in 5 ways I get in the zone before racing.

Can breathing and visualization improve your decisions on track?

I think so. Especially if you couple the two.

Breathe in, and meanwhile visualize yourself at the start. Do you go on the inside or the outside? Do you overtake, do you attack? There are millions of possibilities, but there are four or five outcomes that are much more probable than the others. If you have already seen them, you are ready for them.

A stressed mind does not take great decisions. A relaxed mind is more confident and decides better.

And when you hear “he cracked under pressure”, why did he crack? Most of the time because he was so stressed he was panicking. So the goal is to reduce that stress up front, before you get in the kart. Preparation and confidence go together: the driver who has done a thousand laps in his head the evening before qualifying is going to crack less than the one who shows up with zero. And to me confidence comes from three things, preparation, pushing the limits and repetition, I explain where confidence comes from in racing.

How should you breathe while you are driving?

It would be foolish to say “Alessio, you should do box breathing through turn one.” That’s not realistic. You cannot do that.

But here is the thing. Most drivers drive in apnea, almost without breathing. You will probably not believe me, but even after 20 years of driving I still struggle with it. I’m much better than when I was a kid.

What I do now: on the straights I put my head down, and when I put my head down I automatically take a big, deep breath. I can’t tell you exactly when I breathe, but that’s when I feel it. Definitely not on the brakes, and not through a flat out high G corner.

So visualize it before you drive: a proper big breath on the straight. Then you will do it when you drive, and it keeps you in a better mindset and less panicking.

Can breathing reduce physical tension in the body?

Yes. Especially the lack of breathing.

When you drive you need a lot of air. Your heart is up there because of the adrenaline, the physical effort and the mental effort. If you don’t breathe, you lose lucidity, you get brain fogged and you take bad decisions. And the less you breathe, the more tension builds up in your body. Fatigue does the same thing, I explain it in how fatigue hurts decision making.

One practical thing: check your seat and your rib protector. A rib protector should be firm, but if it’s too tight it obstructs your breathing. Same with a seat that’s so tight you barely breathe, that’s an issue. More in karting rib protectors.

How do professional athletes use breathing before a big race?

I’ve read many sports biographies and sports performance books, and there is a pattern. Most of them visualize, do some meditation, and do breathing exercises. The technique may be slightly different for each one. But they pretty much all do it.

Why? Because they prepared for years, and that one race may define the whole season. If they are not in the right state of mind on the day, they waste all that effort.

Even the icemen, like Kimi Räikkönen or Max Verstappen, I feel are still going to feel that pressure a little bit. They just mastered that state. It’s not just racing drivers. It’s the same for any athlete.

Should you do breathing exercises the night before a race?

I used to do it a lot before going to bed, to relax myself.

Because a good night of sleep is very important. If you can’t sleep because you are stressed, anticipating the race the next day, worried, you are not going to have a great night. And then automatically you are going to have a bad result the next day.

So the breathing is not only for the grid. There are many moments in a race week where it helps. More on sleep in tips for better sleep before a kart race.

How long should drivers do breathing exercises on a race day?

It’s difficult to give a set number. But I would say 5 to 10 minutes before each race is a very good amount to start. If you feel the benefit, do more.

And at least one or two minutes in the kart, right before you go, waiting for the green flag. Eyes closed, breathing. Even 30 seconds of breathing after a couple of minutes of visualization gets you ready.

You don’t need an hour a day. Not even half an hour. It’s like the 80/20: a couple of minutes of breathing can have a massive impact on your performance.

One thing I really like: an inclined chair, the kind that almost makes you lie down. When I raced I always wanted one with me. In the back of the truck, noise cancelling headphones on, eyes closed, and I would visualize or breathe, or both. Did I do it every day? No. I wish I did. Probably I could have done even better. I also listen to music before sessions, I explain that in does listening to music before racing improve focus.

But the most important thing: don’t start doing it at a race. Start in free practice. You need to build the habit. At the beginning you have to force yourself. Then it becomes almost automatic, and when the race comes and you need it, you have already trained for it.

Frequently asked questions

What is box breathing for racing drivers?

Breathe in for 5 seconds, hold for 5, breathe out for 5, hold for 5, then start again. One cycle is 20 seconds, so three cycles a minute. You can go to 10 seconds per phase once 5 feels easy.

When should a driver do breathing exercises?

In free practice first, to build the habit. Then 5 to 10 minutes before each race, one or two minutes in the kart while waiting for the green flag, and the night before to sleep well.

Can you do breathing exercises while driving a kart?

Not box breathing. But most drivers drive in apnea, so take a big, deep breath on the straights, for example when you put your head down. Never on the brakes or in a flat out high G corner.

How high is a kart driver’s heart rate?

About 165 to 180 beats per minute driving a professional kart, and already 130 to 140 sitting on the grid before the start, against 55 to 60 when you wake up.

Should a driver be completely calm before a race?

No. You want the sweet spot in the middle. Too sleepy and you are not activated, too psyched and you drive in a desperate way and crash in the first corner.

More of the mental side is in the mindset guides, and here is why you need a go kart coach. If you want your race routine built around you, breathing included, that is what I work on in the 6 months transformation. And if you just want me to look at one of your sessions, send me your onboard for an onboard review.