why can’t we just breath faster when we run so we’re not out of breath, and when we do breath faster we pass out
In: 20
Even though your rate of breathing increases by a lot when you’re exhausted, you’re not really adding more oxygen to the blood. Your flow of blood is still the limiting factor, but your body tries to overcompensate by breathing faster, even if it doesn’t help.
This is why, if you get in great cardiovascular shape, you can do the same amount of work even if you’re not breathing as heavily. The blood can pick up and transport the oxygen in your lungs faster, even if you’re not moving more air through your lungs in total. The oxygen content of air when you breathe in is about 20%, and the oxygen content of the air you exhale is about 15%, so 75% of the oxygen in the air is unused.
Obviously there is a crossover point here where if your cardio gets amazing enough, you might have to start breathing faster to maximize your oxygen uptake, but in most people, the heart and blood limits you before your lungs.
Latest Answers