Our amazing lungs!!! We have two of them, the right a bit larger than the left, and they both work wonders right in our chest and we probably don even think about them.
Every single organ in our body needs oxygen to survive, hence why we need to breathe 20,ooo times a day.
Once air goes down our windpipe (trachea) it hits other tubes called bronchial tubes which split into both lungs. Even smaller pipes called bronchioles spread through each lung with an air sack at the end of them called alveoli.
The gas exchange of oxygen for carbon dioxide happens in the alveoli, where it floods the blood with oxygen and rips out the CO2 and sends it back out of our bodies.
So we know how they work, but how can we make them stronger and more efficient?
Exercise is the first and major component of getting more efficient lungs. Decreasing your body fat, increasing the efficiency of your bodily functions, making your heart stronger and improving blood circulation will make life so much easier for our lungs.
High intensity workouts, breath hold workouts and swimming are all amazing for getting stronger lungs. Just look at what those olympic swimmers can do!!
Breathing not only keeps us a live, but if we consciously focus on our breath we can gain so much more. Breathing techniques, even like this basic one where you breathe in for 4 seconds hold for 4 seconds and exhale for 4 seconds, can have major effects. Stress reduction is a major reason for breath work and if you have heard of Wim Hof you will know that you can regulate hormones and decrease inflammation, as studied through universities, with breathing.
So ditch the cigarettes, go run up some hills, lift some weights and breathe deep breathes into a lung conscious life.
Thanks for reading.