For a typical adult male, the volume of air exchanged in the lungs per minute increases from 6 L at rest to over 90 L during physical activity. Therefore, your lungs must work differently during exercise to meet increased oxygen demands. Like most organs, your lungs collaborate with numerous physiological factors for success.
What the Lungs Do
Your lungs acquire oxygen from the atmosphere, which is then delivered to your bloodstream. In exchange, blood transports carbon dioxide--obtained from working muscles--back to your lungs to be exhaled into the atmosphere. The transfer occurs within microscopic sacs located inside your lungs called alveoli. Your lungs assist with breathing, the process of air entering and leaving your respiratory tract, and respiration, the exchanges of gasses within alveoli.
Breathing Muscles and Exercise
During exercise, your lungs depend on inspiratory muscles--the only skeletal muscles required to sustain life. Without these muscles, lung function would be limited and physical activity would be virtually impossible. Inspiratory, or breathing muscles, include your diaphragm located under your lungs, your intercostal muscles located along your ribcage and your abdominal muscles. Breathing muscles enable deep breathing and increased oxygen intake by pulling on your lungs as they fill with air. Additionally, breathing muscles accelerate expiration, or breathing out, during exercise.
Neural Control during Exercise
Located in the lower brain, your respiratory center uses metabolic information to control the rate and amplitude of your breathing. Receptors located within blood vessels continuously monitor the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide circulating through your body. As changes occur during exercise, the respiratory center in your brain signals your lungs and breathing muscles to increase inspiration and breathing.
Lung Improvements with Exercise
Exercise produces many cardiovascular and respiratory changes for enhanced oxygen delivery during a workout. However, your lungs experience direct changes with exercise. For example, weekly exercise can increase your lung volume, or the amount of air that you can inhale or exhale during a single breath. Indirect improvements for lung functioning include stronger breathing muscles, enhanced oxygen exchange within working muscles and a healthier heart for blood circulation.
References
- "Exercise Physiology: Human Bioenergetics and Its Applications"; George A. Brooks, et al.; 2004
- University of New Mexico; The Science of Breathing; Sarah Novotny and Len Kravitz, Ph.D.
- "ACSM's Resources for the Personal Trainer"; American College of Sports Medicine; 2007
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