Iga Swiatek was recently seen practicing with her mouth taped. This raised the obvious question – why would a tennis player train with the mouth taped?

Taping the mouth encourages breathing through the nose. Nasal breathing produces nitric oxide, improving performance on the court and recovery after the practice.

Her fitness coach Maciej Ryszczuk devised this method to improve Swiatek’s endurance. Swiatek explained, “It’s harder to breathe when you’re only breathing with your nose, and it’s easier for my heart rate to increase. I think it has something to do with endurance, but I’m not going to explain it to you appropriately because I’m not an expert.”

Iga Swiatek admitted that she had difficulty understanding why her coaches and trainers ask her to do certain things. She has been practicing with her mouth taped for a long time.