Exercise of any type changes your breathing pattern as your body works harder to supply oxygen to muscle tissue and the vital organs. When your breathing becomes erratic and labored, you may experience some uncomfortable and dangerous symptoms such as dizziness, chest pain and panic. There are many different causes for exercise-induced hyperventilation including incorrect breathing patterns, lactic acidosis and heart or lung disease.
Incorrect Breathing Patterns
The most common reason for hyperventilation during exercise is poor breathing patterns. Breathing incorrectly can decrease the amount of oxygen being supplied to the body and lead to hyperventilation and panic. According to Military.gov, proper breathing for running/cardio should be at a 3:2 ratio for inhaling and exhaling, respectively. This means you should inhale three times in short spurts, then exhale twice. By maintaining this pattern, your heart rate will also remain more consistent. While doing resistance training, you should always exhale on the exertion. For example, if you are doing a pushup, you would exhale as you push yourself up. Breathing during the exertion can prevent hernia, high blood pressure and blood vessel strain.
Lactic Acidosis
This term applies to the body's process of metabolizing the lactic acid produced from exercising. Lactic acid is a naturally occurring chemical released by muscle tissue when the body's sugars are used for energy. In a 2004 study done by the Institute of Sports and Preventative Medicine, the breakdown of lactic acid played a key role in exercise-induced hyperventilation. Avoid excessive lactic acid buildup by stretching and exercising regularly at a moderate intensity. Pushing yourself too hard or lifting extremely heavy weights causes your body to create more lactic acid which can not only lead to hyperventilation, but excessive muscle soreness as well.
Heart or Lung Disease
In certain cases, hyperventilation or shortness of breath can be an indicator of a serious underlying medical issue. If your heart is unable to pump adequate blood to your body during exercise, hyperventilation may occur. This can be due to conditions such as heart failure, arrhythmia or heart attack. You may also hyperventilate if your oxygen supply is decreased due to a problem in your lungs such as a blood clot, pneumonia or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. These serious conditions are often accompanied by other symptoms of chest pain or pain in the jaw or arm.
Treatment
Most cases of hyperventilation can be attributed to poor breathing or anxiety. When your breathing becomes labored, it can lead to panic, which will often cause the hyperventilation to get worse. When hyperventilation occurs, immediately stop exercising, sit down in a cool place, and manually slow your breathing by inhaling slowly through your nose and exhaling through your mouth. If you feel faint, put your head between your knees until the feeling subsides. Hyperventilation during exercise almost always warrants a trip to your physician to rule out any physical cause for the problem.
References
- Military.gov: Breathing During Exercise; Stew Smith; 2011
- "BR J Sports Medicine"; Is Lactic Acidosis a Cause of Exercise Induced Hyperventilation at the Respiratory Compensation Point?;T. Meyer, et al;Institute of Sports and Preventative Medicine; Sarrbrucken Germany; October 2004
- Medline Plus; Breathing Difficulty; 2011
