How lung capacity increases when doing consistent cardio and what happens anatomically?
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Lung function isnt my prime specialism but I think I can answer it: so your “lung capacity” can be broken down into sections. It’s important to know that capacity isn’t actually that important, it’s how well they function.
So, I *think* you get the impression your capacity increases because people who exercise the muscles for the lungs – diaphragm, intercostal muscles etc. Have more control. In reality, we cant empty our lungs completely. If you were to take a full breath in and breath out as far as you can, that’s known as your “vital capacity (VC).
Beyond the VC, there is a small amount of air that must remain in the lungs. If it didn’t, the lungs would become a vacuum and collapse, like sucking all the air out of a plastic bag. This is your residual capacity.
Swimmers, wind instrument players etc appear to have higher capacity on simple lung function tests like spiros because their muscles are able to push more air out. If we were to test the actual lung volumes themselves, we’d find they’re probably not much bigger than normal.
In fact, having an overly high total lung capacity (TLC) can be a sign of lung disease, known as hyperinflation.
I hope this has helped (and is accurate!) I did lung function tests for a living, but it was never my specialty so my understanding is limited.
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