So post operatively for my triple bypass, one thing I am struggling with is Atelectasis. This is a common thing where one is unable to fill the lungs, relative to different breathing patterns established during the long surgery under anaesthesia, and due to accumulated fluid of phlegm. Just as I was checking out, the clean-up crew came by and accidentally threw out a lot of my possessions including my incentive spirometer. I didn't notice this latter loss till I got home.

In looking for alternative exercises online, I found instruction on breathing exercises and probably many know this already, but the seated hand position, or standing, in which the palms face the ceiling and shoulders are rotated back significantly increases lung capacity, which is why it is associated with meditation.

So the handshake position on hoods and drops (and bullhorns) opens up more lung capacity moreso than the flat bar position, unless your hands were gripping the flat bars palm facing the sky (which is also a possible position on rando sized drop bars). I was aware of the muscular skeletal advantage, but this seems like another interesting detail to play with. For me working on lung capacity has had a big effect on my climbing. Of course just tooling along I am not stretched at all, though there may still be advantages to lung filling diaphram breathing.

I knew there was a muscular skeletal