what happens inside the body when athletes get a “2nd wind”?
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There’s a few things that can happen.
1) Recovery after anaerobic exercise.
A person can perform feats that use up energy faster then the repository system can bring in oxygen to use. That uses up the energy stored in their muscles and builds up a lot of fatigue products in their blood and muscles. Afterward, ‘gassed out’, they are weaker and slower. But they might recover very quickly if they can breath and rest for a few moments. The body removes the fatigue products and replenishes the spent glucose, and the athlete has a ‘second wind’, able to perform at a higher level again.
2) Stress hormone response.
A person that feels tired, overheated and weak can seem to recover very quickly if the body releases epinephrine and endorphins. These can rapidly allow a person to ignore aches and pains, catch their breath and cool down.
3) ‘Kick’
A person that is in a sport or task where you’d normally perform it aerobically, like distance running, but has husbanded their energy may have the energy left near the end of the task to push themselves into anaerobic efforts. This sudden burst of speed/energy can get called a ‘second wind’, but really it’s a final push. Most people that have been exercising aerobically hard then finish with a burst of anaerobic exercise will end their workout feeling wiped out.
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