a chance to catch (one's) breath

1. A brief amount of time to try to resume breathing normally after some prolonged aerobic exercise. Can we stop for a couple minutes? I need a chance to catch my breath—I can't run as fast as you guys! Make sure you give yourself a chance to catch your breath during the marathon. That exercise class was way too fast-paced—I hardly had a chance to catch my breath at any point!

2. A brief amount of time in which one is at rest, either physically or mentally, in order to regain one's composure, become more organized, or begin thinking clearly again. There have been so many things going on all at once lately that I haven't had a chance to catch my breath! Once we all have a chance to catch our breaths, we can start working out a plan for the distribution process. I went straight from traveling abroad into the fall semester of school, so I feel like I haven't had a chance to catch my breath.