Why is it important to strengthen your Lung Capacity and how to do it?

Why is it important to strengthen your Lung Capacity and how to do it?

We all have different fitness goals. For some it is building six packs while some strive for toned body and well shaped legs but one seldom thinks about increasing the lung capacity through workout. It is as important as working on any other fitness goals because it can help you achieve the fitness goals you have. It is the lung capacity that shall help you get up the stairs without getting out of breath, or crank up the resistance on a stationary bike. Not only this, lung capacity also helps you lift more weight and recover quicker in between two workout sessions. This is why your lung capacity can make or break your workout schedule. .

A person’s lung capacity is the maximum volume of oxygen that one can utilize during exercise so if you can maximize the amount of oxygen that you use while doing strenuous exercises, you won’t wear out as quickly and won’t feel the exercise too tough! Following are the 3 days ways to improve your lung capacity.

      1. Cardio

Doing cardio might look easy and you may think that you already do it but to improve your lung capacity, you need to add variety to your workout regime. Whatever cardio activity you are engaged into but make sure that mix up how long you sweat it out i.e. always switch between steady state i.e. longer duration workout with mixed intensity workout  i.e. shorter duration workout with lots of variation in intensity. A good trainer will be able to guide you on how to mix up the workouts.

       2. Breathe

Improving the way you breathe can have a profound effect on your workout regime. Although breathing is considered automatic, we begin to breathe shallow as we age which in turn affects the amount of oxygen that is delivered to your muscles and ends up decreasing the energy that you intend to put in your workouts. By breathing deeply, you will improve your lung capacity and for doing so begin by opening your mouth, inhaling, and then taking a two-count exhale followed by a three-count, and so on. Keep increasing the length of your exhale and inhale and breathe well.

     3. Recover

Recovery (both physical and mental) is as much important for any individual who is following a workout regime. One should could a lower intensity cardio and daily activities such as house cleaning or a take a stroll around the neighborhood so that the body recovers from the strenuous regime. Also remember not to overtrain your body else you will have a tough time controlling your breath and remember that trying to breathe hard isn’t making your lungs stronger.

To sum up, take a break and relax. Your body will surely reward you. Do not forget to warm up properly before hard cardio workouts and assess your breathing rate during the warm-up session. If you feel you are breathing harder then extend your warm-up session or decrease the intensity of your workout for that day. It’s better to go for tough workouts only 2-3 times per week and allow your body to fully recover between your low and high-intensity workouts.