Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a general term for conditions that make it hard to breathe. This includes asthma, chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Exercise is an important component of an overall treatment program. The right type and intensity can help strengthen your lungs and keep you fit, which can help control symptoms. Before beginning any exercises for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, talk to your doctor about any concerns or contraindications.
Breathing Exercises
Before starting any formal exercise program, you must learn how to breathe more efficiently. As you get better at this, you can incorporate breathing techniques while working out to help make exercise more tolerable. According to the Cleveland Clinic, various breathing exercises can be done to help strengthen your respiratory muscles and teach you how to control breathing during exercise. Techniques can include pursed lip breathing, deep diaphragmatic breathing and breathing while leaning forward. Your physical therapist can review these breathing techniques with you and ensure you're doing them correctly. To get benefits, do breathing exercises once or more each day.
Aerobic-Type Exercises
Exercise can improve breathing ability and quality of life for those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the Cleveland Clinic says. Aerobic-type activities such as walking, biking, swimming and dancing improve your energy levels and make your heart and lungs strong. They can also help you shed extra pounds. The healthier your body, the better able you are to control your symptoms. Make sure you warm up and cool down every time you exercise. Start off slowly and listen to your body to know what level is right. Aerobic activities should be done on as many days of the week as you feel able. To make it easier, you can do a little bit at several times throughout the day versus trying to do one long session. Check with your physician to determine the amount and level of aerobic exercise that's appropriate for you.
Strength Training
When your muscles are strong, your body needs less energy to move around. Kaiser Permanente recommends doing a full-body program to strengthen the upper and lower body. When you're stronger, you have more endurance and are able to do more activities for a longer period before getting too tired or out of breath. It's best to work with a therapist or qualified trainer if you're new to exercise to make sure you are using correct form. Strength training exercises should be done every other day to give your muscles a rest between workouts. You can also break them up by working your upper body one day and your lower body the other day.
Stair-climbing
The goal is to get moving as much as you can. This can be as simple as parking your car further away in the parking lot and walking, taking the stairs when able and doing activities you enjoy, such as gardening. For some, joining a gym can help, or there are videos you can use at home. Though having COPD may make it seem impossible to exercise, the COPD International website says regular exercise helps reduce your shortness of breath, improves your self-esteem and encourages independence.
