It is possible to increase your lung capacity by doing a few quick breathing exercises every day.
It is common for everyone to feel anxious during this time when pneumonia and asthma are so rife. Especially for younger or older people with delicate lungs, it is important to know that are lungs bring oxygen to our blood. We need oxygen to survive because we need energy. To burn the food we eat to turn it into energy, oxygen must be supplied to our cells, and carbon dioxide must be removed. Oxidation occurs when carbohydrates and fats in our body combine with the oxygen we breathe in. The first major factor in getting enough oxygen is eating properly and exercising everyday.
Our lungs and our skin remove heat from our body, and our circulatory system moves substances to and from our cells. Our cells’ demands are constantly changing. The process of respiration is how air moves through our mouth and nose through our trachea (windpipe) straight down into our lungs. Our lungs absorb the oxygen and remove the carbon dioxide after which it is transported through the diaphragm (at the floor of our rib cage) to the rest of our body.
In our lungs we have bronchi, which are large tubes that the air flows through into smaller tubes called bronchioles. Then it moves into tiny air sacs called alveoli where the oxygen separates from other compounds in the air. The best part of the air is then moved into blood vessels called capillaries where the oxygen is carried through to the rest of your body in hemoglobin.
Factors that affect how much oxygen our bodies need include: age, sex, weight, physical fitness and level of physical activity being done. If we don’t get enough oxygen it can be dangerous because we can be affected by poor concentration, fainting, confusion, fatigue or hyperventilation.
Now we will tell you a few short breathing exercises that you can do whenever you have time. While you’re working, relaxing, walking, reading, or during any activity really. You can do it for however long you are comfortable, but we’ve observed best results when done for about 10 minutes twice a day.
- Breathe in deep through your nose… let your belly fill with air
- Breathe out through your nose
- Place one hand on your belly and the other on your chest
- Feel the air expanding your belly and practice full, deep breaths in and shorter breaths out
Another great exercise is to combine breathing with the tensing of muscles. For example, try this:
- Breathe in deep (for around 3 seconds) while tensing your biceps
- Then breathe out while releasing the tension in those muscles.
- Continue for all the muscles you can tense, one by one starting with your feet and ending with your ears.
One more great exercise you can do is a great way to release stress or anxiety.
- Breathe in deep through your nose, fill your belly and chest
- When you can’t breathe in anymore, open your mouth as wide as you can and breathe out with a “hah” sound
- Repeat as many times as you like.
We hope that these exercises will help you a little bit during your stressful days. After about a week of practicing for only 20 minutes a day, your lung capacity should have grown a little bit. You’ll feel less out of breath on your morning run or while climbing those stairs. You’ll also be able to hold your breath for a longer time under water. A tip for the next time you do a ‘hold your breath’ competition is to breathe in as deeply as you can (until you can’t breathe any longer). You can learn to find that perfect spot of lung fullness so that you’re not too full with air, but that you can continue to feed your air sacs for as long as possible. If you feel like you’re having difficulty breathing, that your chest is tight, or that you cannot take deep breaths without pain, do read these other exercises to improve your breathing.
The Wim Hof Method
While sitting in a comfortable place, take 30 quick, deep breaths, inhaling through your nose and exhaling through your mouth. Then, take a deep breath and exhale; hold until you need to breathe in. Inhale again, as deep as you can, and hold it for 10 seconds. Repeat as many times as you like.