Alison McConnell

Alison McConnell graduated from the University of Birmingham with a B.Sc. in Biological Sciences (Physiology; 1983). An interest in human physiology drove her to undertake an M.Sc. in Human and Applied Physiology at King’s College London (1984), after which she completed a PhD in the Department of Thoracic Medicine at King’s College Hospital, exploring control of the exercise hyperpnoea in human beings (1989). The transition into exercise physiology was completed when Alison went to the University of Birmingham as an MRC Research Fellow (1986-89). Her research explored the control of breathing in healthy older people, and sought to understand why they are more breathless during exercise than younger people. Her attention quickly turned to the respiratory pump muscles as a potential contributor to breathlessness. Alison took the first step on the journey that led to the publication of her two books on “breathing training” by asking a simple question - ‘does strengthening the inspiratory muscles of older people make them less breathless’? Alison set about developing her own breathing trainer, which she brought to market in 1997 as “The POWERbreathe®”. After a short period running the University spinout company that brought the POWERbreathe® to market, Alison retruned to academic life. She joined Brunel University in 2000, where she has pioneered research on the ergogenic effects of inspiratory muscle training. Her guide to breathing training for sport, “Breathe Strong, Perform Better”, was published in 2011 (www.breathestrong.com), and her guide for clinicians was published 2013 (www.physiobreathe.com).