Breathwork, Nervous Systems, Cool Downs, and the “Invisible Side” of Pickleball

Ben Johns is as well known for what happens between points as during them. Watch the top players on tour and you'll notice something: they are almost never reactive between points. They reset deliberately. They have a routine. That composure isn't personality — it's trained.

The sports science behind this has been hiding in plain sight for years. Djokovic runs a full breathing protocol during the 90-second changeover — not to relax, but to shift physiological state on demand. The All Blacks use the haka not just as intimidation but as a nervous system activation sequence — the forced expiration during chanting triggers a deeper inhale, flooding the body with oxygen before the first whistle. What's different now is access. None of this is gatekept by level or budget. The between-point interval in pickleball is shorter than tennis and longer than a boxing exchange. It's just enough time to either spiral or reset. The same physiological principles that work for Djokovic work identically for a 3.5 player at Fairgrounds trying to stop tilting after three unforced errors in a row.Some of you have already crossed paths with Colleen Mallett at JHPS sessions, Training Hall, and recent Jamboree practices at Fairgrounds.

Sometimes she appears quietly before a session begins and guides a troop through five minutes of breathwork. Sometimes she’s helping players settle themselves after a rough stretch of games. Sometimes she’s leading a cool down after everybody else has already left the court. Sometimes she’s just observing the emotional weather of a group.

In the heat of battle, she’s helped many of us find focus, confidence, and calm. The comfort in a familiar face can make all the difference.

Colleen’s role inside Jamboree Practice Culture is difficult to describe quickly because it sits in a territory most practrice environments barely know how to talk about.

Pickleball players spend endless hours discussing mechanics, paddles, grips, percentages, and strategy. But underneath all of that is something that high performance athletes are endlessly trying to figure out.

How do you regulate your nervous system under pressure? How do you reset emotionally after chaos? How do you recover between points? How do you actually calm yourself down before competition? How do you access energy when you feel flat? How do you connect with your partner and get into flow? How do you cool down properly after intensity instead of carrying the whole nervous system spike home with you?

That’s the territory Colleen works in. Because there isn’t a siren that goes off, a bone that breaks, but it adds a layer to physical movement and mental focus.

Mallett’s background reads almost like the résumé of a character from a Wes Anderson film:

Certified Red Cross swimming instructor. YMCA fitness instructor. BATD dance instructor. Nutrition studies at the University of Guelph. Clinical hypnotherapist. Reflexologist. Fitness model and posing coach. Reiki and Qigong practitioner. ZIVA Meditation. Transcendental Meditation. Pilates. Feldenkrais. Mindfulness. Neuro-linguistic programming. Nervous System Regulation practitioner. Oxygen Advantage breathwork instructor. Level 1 Pickleball Coach.

Over time, she has synthesized ideas from dozens of disciplines into something highly practical and unusually grounded for pickleball athletes. For some of our players her tips and guidance have been life. changing.

At Fairgrounds, Colleen will now be helping support troops through breathwork sessions, nervous system resets, and post-session cool downs. When you see Colleen, tell her what you need help with.

We asked Colleen a few questions about what all of this actually means.

PBJ: What exactly is your role inside Jamboree Practice Culture?

CM: That’s still evolving. Part of what excites me about this environment is an opportunity to help build something that recognizes pickleball players as complete human beings — not just competitors or DUPR ratings.

My role is partly about helping players regulate energy, focus, recovery, and emotional state.

Sometimes that means leading breathwork. Sometimes it means helping players understand why they suddenly feel overwhelmed or scattered in competitive environments. Sometimes it’s as simple as helping somebody transition out of stress mode after they get hit in the face by a ball or after a long session so they don’t carry tension home with them physically or emotionally.

And sometimes it’s simply being present and observant inside the environment.

A lot of athletes don’t realize how much their breathing patterns affect their decision-making, tension, timing, recovery, and confidence.

PBJ: As you’ve begun to introduce different types of breathwork to each troop, what do you see players actually figuring out?

CM: Right now we’re introducing four different breathing techniques that serve four different purposes:

The important thing is understanding that breathing is not just “relaxation.”

Different techniques create different physiological effects.

Some methods help settle the nervous system. Some increase alertness and readiness. Some help players recover after emotional spikes or frustration. Some help the body transition out of competition mode.

The long-term goal is for players to begin recognizing what state they’re actually in — and then have tools to shift that state intentionally. The Jamboree Practice Atlas intentionally has a place for this.

PBJ: How does this connect to pickleball specifically?

CM: Pickleball is emotionally revealing.

The speed of the game, the social dynamics, the closeness of opponents, the constant feedback loops — it activates people very quickly.

You can watch somebody lose focus after two missed returns. You can watch somebody tighten physically after getting targeted. You can watch a troop collectively become anxious or chaotic.

And often players think the issue is purely technical. But sometimes the issue is physiological. Sometimes the body has simply shifted into survival mode. Breathing gives players a bridge back toward regulation.

PBJ: What will your role look like during Saturday morning sessions at Fairgrounds?

CM: Part of the idea is flexibility.

Troop leaders can essentially “book” me at different moments during the session depending on what their group needs.

For example:

One of the interesting things is that different troops need very different things. Some groups want calming. Some want energy. Some want grounding. Some want help recovering emotionally after intense competition.

Some should use these sessions to experiment. 

PBJ: You’ve also been leading cool downs after each practice sessions. Why does that matter?

CM: Most recreational athletes don’t really cool down.They finish playing while their nervous system is still elevated, throw their bag in the car, and immediately transition into traffic, errands, emails, family responsibilities, or stress.

The body never really receives the signal that the competitive experience is over. Cool downs help players transition intentionally; physically, mentally and emotionally Breathing, mobility, down-regulation, simple yet enhanced recovery practices — these things matter more than people think. And interestingly, some of the players who initially seemed most skeptical have become the most curious afterward.

PBJ: What have you noticed so far at Fairgrounds?

CM: One thing I’ve noticed is that the players who participated in the breathwork sessions ended up deeply present, connected and highly engaged competitively afterward.

Two of the courts that participated in breathwork ended up meeting in the One Point Slam finals. Another pair won the Live Ball challenge. That doesn’t mean breathwork magically creates winners.

But I do think it can improve presence, regulation, communication, and recovery under pressure. We’re seeing more and more teams consciously breathing together between before big points at Jamboree.

I’m also interested in hearing more from players themselves about what they’re experiencing and what feels useful.

This is still evolving.

PBJ: The phrase “Practice Culture” keeps coming up. Hoes does breathwork connect to that larger idea?

CM: Absolutely. Practice culture isn’t just what drills you run. It’s the emotional environment. The nervous system environment. The communication environment. The recovery environment. It’s how people learn to respond to stress, uncertainty, frustration, pressure, and growth.

Breathwork is really just one doorway into that larger conversation. Honestly, sometimes simply reminding somebody to breathe changes the entire trajectory of their session. Next time you and your partner hit a few balls into the net, give it a try.  

What we do know is that there is no shortage of literature, techniques and discussion about breathwork available.  It’s not gatekept based on level or experience.