Jogging or running, terms used interchangeably in the fitness community, are extraordinarily efficient ways to burn fat, tone your legs, relieve stress and improve your cardiovascular fitness. The harder you run, the faster and more deeply you breathe, sometimes to the point of feeling a burning sensation. By taxing the lungs, jogging may improve intrinsic lung function.
Acute Effects
While running and other intense aerobic exercise benefits the cardiorespiratory system over time, a single stressful bout of exercise actually leads to diminished lung function by several measures. A study published in the October 2008 issue of "Journal of Sports Sciences" measured the inspiratory pressure and flow of runners before and after a marathon-distance treadmill run and found that these were significantly less after the completion of the run. Note that lung function in this experiment declined not because of observed changes in lung tissue, but because of fatigue of the muscles controlling inhalation.
Markers of Inflammation
Interestingly, jogging over an extended period induces changes in the airways and lungs reminiscent of obstructive lung disease, such as asthma. A 2008 study by Dr. Mohamed Denquezli and colleagues in Tunisia examined the effects of one year of running on the lungs of 10 healthy distance runners. At the end of the year-long training bout, the runners manifested increased levels of substances such as histamine, neutrophils and macrophages, all of which are associated with inflammation. Lung function, however, was unchanged.
Children
Jogging for only eight weeks is sufficient to improve lung function in prepubescent children, according to a study in the July 2005 issue of "European Journal of Applied Physiology." Children were separated into control and training groups. The control group had no changes in lung function at the end of the eight weeks, but the group that had regularly performed short, intense bursts of jogging demonstrated increases in lung volume, expiratory flow rate, the average volume of breaths and oxygen consumption. This suggests that beginning exercise early in life, when organs are more plastic, is crucial to lifelong fitness.
Cold Weather
The belief that jogging in very cold weather can damage the lungs is pervasive. Various exercise physiologists have investigated this phenomenon, and the results have been consistent and conclusive. For example, a 2010 study by Daniel Carey and colleagues examined the effect of cold-weather running on the lungs of 12 healthy subjects who jogged an average of 25 miles per week. Postrun lung function tests were completely normal, with the exception of two subjects determined to have exercise-induced asthma.
References
- "Journal of Sports Sciences"; Changes in Respiratory Muscle and Lung Function Following Marathon Running in Man; Emma Z. Ross et al.; October 2008
- "Journal of Sports Sciences"; One-Year Endurance Training: Effects on Lung Function and Airway Inflammation; Mohamed Denguezli et al.; October 2008
- "European Journal of Applied Physiology"; High-intensity intermittent running training improves pulmonary function and Alters Exercise Breathing Pattern in Children; Cedric Nourry et al.; July 2005
- "Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research"; The Acute Effect of Cold Air Exercise in Determination of Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm in Apparently Healthy Athletes; Daniel Carey et al.; August 2010
