The Short & Long Term effects of exercise

When exercise begins the muscles require extra what for aerobic exercise?

oxygen and glucose

To ensure fast and efficient delivery of oxygen and glucose to the muscle cells, what changes occur in the body?

• Heart rate increases

  • Normal resting heart rate is approximately 70-80 beats per minute, during exercise, this raises to 100-150 beats per minute (this will vary depending on the intensity and duration of the exercise)

• Contractions of the heart increase and are more powerful which increases the stroke volume

• The rate and depth of breathing increases

  • This ensures that efficient gas exchange in the lungs can still take place

• Increased body temperature

  • An increase in muscle contractions during exercise will release more heat energy

  • The effects of this can be seen in sweating which releases heat energy at the skin surface by evaporation of sweat. Skin may also look red due to blood vessels at the surface of the skin dilating to release heat energy by radiation

What are short term effects of exercise?

changes up to 36 hours after exercise

describe 5 short term effects of exercise

• Tiredness/fatigue - the muscles have been working hard and become swollen and feel heavy which can lead to tiredness. This sensation can also be caused by muscles using up stores of carbohydrates during respiration and the energy supply is reduced

• Light-headedness - this can also present as feeling dizzy; this is often due to low blood sugar or low blood pressure

• Nausea (feeling sick) - if the participant has overexerted themselves during exercise this can leave them feeling nauseous as blood is directed away from the stomach and digestive organs to the heart and lungs

• Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) - occurs because of small tears in the muscle that happens during exercise that cause swelling and soreness in the muscles

• Cramps - caused by involuntary contractions of muscle that happen because of fatigue; dehydration and loss of minerals can contribute to cramps (not the same as DOMS)

When is exercise considered long term?

when participants sustain regular exercise for months or even years

describe 8 long term effects of exercise (beneficial)

• Change in body shape - this could be a decrease in body mass due to fat stores being used to provide glucose needed for energy. Anaerobic exercises can increase the size of muscles involved in the exercise: this is known as hypertrophy and can alter the shape of the body

• Increase in muscle strength - anaerobic exercises such as weight lifting can improve the strength of the muscles involved

• Improvement in muscle endurance - this occurs due to repeated exercise such as sit-ups, the muscles involved will be able to endure more exercise over time

• Joints become more stable and supple -the muscles, tendons and ligaments surrounding joints will get stronger and so joints are supported better. Over time joints will become more flexible and suppleness will improve

• Increase in speed - anaerobic exercises such as sprinting will increase the speed of participants with regular training

• Improvement in cardiovascular endurance - this comes from slower aerobic exercises, such as swimming, where endurance is built up and stamina also improves

• Increase in heart size - this is an example of hypertrophy. This heart is a muscle so repeated working of the heart will increase the size of the muscle tissue

• Decrease in resting heart rate - this is known as bradycardia and can occur after prolonged exercise for months or years. Stroke volume will increase with regular exercise so heart rate must decrease to ensure cardiac output is kept the same

what is hypertrophy?

the process of muscle growth where existing muscle fibers get bigger in size, rather than creating new ones