Workout mask helps you breathe less easily

IT MIGHT sound like the last thing you would want when working out – but the latest musthave gadget for athletes is a mask that restricts breathing.

The device is designed to limit air supply and recreate the conditions of training at high altitude.

Olympic cycling gold medallist Sir Bradley Wiggins and tennis champion Andy Murray are among the leading sports stars who train in mountainous areas, where the body compensates for the thinner air by producing extra amounts of oxygencarrying red blood cells.

The benefits can last for some time after the athlete returns to sea level.

The £77 mask, which is made by Austrian firm Phantom Athletics and goes on sale in April, should produce similar effects by reducing the amount of air that users take in, and strengthening the muscles used for breathing.

TV adventurer Bear Grylls has already ordered one of the masks.

Phantom co-founder Dominique Wenger said: ‘We’ve had interest from all kinds of sports, from cycling and running to rowing and rugby – even firefighters want to train with it.’