Why you get Winded doing basic activities as you age, and how to overcome it
Breathing can do a lot more than help us not pass out during a workout. It can affect the overall quality of our workouts and our energy levels. So it's important to understand how your body uses that oxygen.
Your body processes the oxygen you breath to be able to pass into your blood stream to feed the muscles of your body. The stronger muscle you have, the more oxygen your body processes.
As you age, we don’t process oxygen very well. That’s why you get winded going up stairs. Your body neither demands more oxygen nor uses it. During a resistnace training workout, your muscles require oxygen much greater than when doing walking or running.
After the proper stimulus is applied, your body uses more oxygen to help with the muscle rebuilding process, called the EPOC Effect. Your body calls for more oxygen that helps muscle rebuilding over days. When you walk, however, the EPOC effect is very small and does not extend past the time walking.
Here are some simple tips for your breathing:
- Have good posture when sitting to allow chest and diaphragm to open. Draw breath in through the stomach.
- To create good circulation, breath in through your nose and out through your mouth.
- Deep, slow, steady breaths not only give you the oxygen you need but help you relax
So it really does come down to good old fashioned breathing. Relax, take a deep breath and know you are doing your body good.
