Training for your first trail ultra marathon. It's not all about running.

Two exercises for Increasing your lung capacity.

As I mentioned in my last article, I am very focusing now on building my upper body because I realised that without a strong core you don’t go far with running. You literally don’t go far.

So now four times a week I weight lift, and I am in my learning phase now and also experimental status checking out to see what works for me and finding out ways to achieve the best optimal result in the least time. It's It’s not like I don’t get enough exercise as weight lifting is concern building a house is the optimum weightlifting event. (Carrying and building bricks, making concrete and using a wheelbarrow to move it, pulling buckets of concrete up, installing scaffolds, etc.)

I try to incorporate exercises that will help me straight my shoulders because I do have rounded shoulders and that’s because of the nature of my work. I am a computer engineer, and I do use the computer a lot so me learning for hours in front of it is a major contributing cause. Another reason is the muscles of my upper back are weak having. As a result, to be pulled forward by my stronger chest muscles; that’s why I try to balance the chest and back exercises.

Now someone would ask what does having rounded shoulders have to do with running? Well, I had the same opinion, I have rounded shoulders I can still run just fine right? Well, it turns out after searching a bit more that is not okay, it’s very limiting. The reason is that rounded shoulders can result in reduced lung capacity, we cannot take in more air than our lungs are able. The difference in lung function is not small its 15% if you have rounded shoulders you are using 85% of your lung capacity providing you don’t have any other imbalances or issues.

So you can see why its imperative to bring my shoulders in a straight line.

To do that I use four exercises which Brendan Brazier suggests in his book Thrive Fitness which are
1.    Bend Over Stretch and you hold it for 30 seconds
2.    Shoulder, Chest, and hip flexor stretch  (30 seconds each side)
3.    Shoulder blade pinch  (25 repetitions 20 seconds rest between sets)
4.    Seated lateral raise (15 repetitions 20 seconds rest between sets)

Along with other exercises this four I practice them in the morning before I go to work. Since I started doing them I can feel myself being taller.

Now a second exercise that will help you with your increase of your lung capacity is Dumbbell fly.

By doing dumbbell flys you are strengthening your chest muscles (pectoral) this exercise contributes to expanding the muscles between your ribs allowing for better respiration. The more expanded chest muscles you have the easier it is to inhale oxygen!

If you notice all the elite marathoners they might seem to be weak in the upper body but if you note closely for their size they have pretty strong pectoral muscles which allow them to host and accommodate their enlarged lungs that they acquired by years of professional training.

So now except dumbbell flys, I do use other chest exercises because I am not as active in that area as I should.

So here two activities that will make you breath better, breath more and breath easier.

1.    Seated lateral raise (15 repetitions 20 seconds rest between sets)
2.    Dumbbell Fly

I hope I helped.

Have a healthy and happy day.
My warmest Regards
Andreas Michaelides
​Author of Thirsty For Health.

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