Most of us are pretty much already aware that exercise is good for the body, but when you understand how exercise changes the body, it makes getting off your bed and into the gym much easier. The body is a complex machine, and a lot of changes typically take place when you start working out.
When you exercise, one tends to breathe faster than usual, and this has prompted so many people to ask the question: How is blood flow related to lung function during exercise? Well, the answer to this question is easy but in requires a better comprehension of the changes that occur in the body when we exercise.
Blood Flow Related To Lung Function During Exercise
How Is Blood Flow Related To Lung Function During Exercise?
As mentioned earlier, a lot happens to your body during exercise, and the very first thing you will probably notice is that you are out of breath and your pulse is high. However disconcerting it may feel, it is a normal body response. If that is the case, then how is blood flow related to lung function during exercise?
When you exercise, the blood vessels are dilated so as to increase the volume of oxygen carried in the blood, and as a result, the lungs work harder to satisfy the body’s oxygen demands.
Also, the blood circulation volume increases when you exercise, making your body more efficient; hence the lungs must work just as hard to maintain the body’s efficiency level.
Importance of Breathing Properly During Exercise
It is not a secret that you have to breathe properly when performing aerobic activities, like running or swimming, or other types of exercise such as bodyweight training or strength training. Besides ensuring that your connective tissues and workout muscles get sufficient oxygen, here are other benefits you will accrue from following the right breathing pattern.
Helps in Maintaining Posture
When you inhale during exercise, the chest expands, and as a result, it aids in keeping your back straight. This is crucial when exercising because a majority of the exercises we perform require that our back be in line.
Besides, the right workout posture provides safety and ensures that you work your target muscles properly.
Improves Performance
When you follow the right breathing pattern during exercise, you take in oxygen that’s distributed throughout your body to provide your muscles the power to push on. The more power your muscles have, the more improvements you get in your overall body performance.
Also, breathing properly during exercise means there will be more oxygen for your body to use for other functions.
Improves Fat Loss
The body requires water and oxygen to convert body fat into energy. The more oxygen you take in – through proper breathing, the more your body gets rid of fat, toxins and stored water resulting in weight loss.
Breathing in properly fuels this process and therefore allows you to shed the fats faster and more efficiently.
Poor breathing slows down your metabolism since the body’s trying to cling onto the resources it already has, which in turn produces fat. With improved breathing, however, you can reverse this process.
Nasal Breathing vs. Mouth Breathing
There’s always the tendency for people, whether adults or children, to breathe through the mouth instead of the nose. Whether you’re going about your daily life, sleeping or exercising, it’s preferable to breathe through the nose than through the mouth.
Mouth breathing causes the brain to perceive that carbon dioxide is leaving the body too fast and as a result, it stimulates the production of mucus in an attempt to slow the breathing.
Breathing through the nose is more efficient that mouth breathing with regard to supplying oxygen to the body. When doing cardiovascular exercise, it is advisable to inhale and exhale through the nose to facilitate filtering and warming of the inhaled air.
Nasal Breathing.
Breathing through the nose is way healthier than mouth breathing for some reasons. The lungs take oxygen from the air, and most of the oxygen absorption occurs on exhalation. Exhaling through the nose causes higher air pressure and as a result, a slower exhalation which gives the lungs more time to extract large volumes of oxygen.
Mouth Breathing.
This is common in people whose nasal passages are restricted or blocked. For instance, a small nostril size can cause one to breathe primarily through the mouth. Mouth breathing is greatly discouraged because it is inefficient and can result in hyperventilation, which worsens the symptoms of asthma.
Conclusion
When you exercise, the lungs and blood circulatory system respond differently to satisfy the body’s demands for more energy. The most commonly felt response is a rapid heartbeat and a more powerful lung function to deliver sufficient oxygen to the body muscles.
Besides facilitating optimal oxygen intake, here are some other benefits of breathing properly during exercise:
- Improves performance
- Helps in maintaining posture
- Improves the body’s fat burning capabilities
We hope you enjoyed this article and we would love to hear from you. Don’t hesitate to drop us a comment.
