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Breathing and ventilation

Lung volume recruitment

Regularly filling the lungs more fully than ordinary breathing does, to keep the chest supple.

What it means

Ordinary quiet breathing only uses part of the lungs. When breathing muscles weaken, the chest can gradually stiffen. Deliberately taking bigger breaths, often with a hand-held bag, is done to keep the chest and lungs moving through their full range.

Why you might hear it

  • It is often taught at the same time as breath stacking, using the same equipment.
  • A physiotherapist may set it as a daily routine.

People who may help

Where Compass goes into this

About this explanation

These are plain explanations of words you may come across, not advice about your own situation. Where a word matters to a decision, the question pages go into it properly, and your own team is the place to take it.