Short and Long Term effects of Exercise

• Immediate effects of exercise on the body systems:

  • Increase in stroke volume; increase in heart rate; increase in cardiac output; increase in blood pressure.
  • Increase in breathing rate; increase in tidal volume.
  • Increase in oxygen uptake; increase in carbon dioxide removal.
  • Increase in lactate production.
  • Increase in temperatures of muscles; increased pliability.
• When a person takes part in exercise, the cardiovascular, respiratory, energy, and muscular systems all work together to supply energy to the working muscles and remove waste products.

  When the muscles start to work, they need more oxygen so the respiratory system responds by getting more oxygen into the lungs. The blood carries greater amounts of oxygen and the heart responds to pump more oxygenated blood around the body.

  • Immediate effects can be visible in hot, sweaty, and red skin.
• Short term effects of exercise (24-36 hours after):

  • Tiredness and fatigue: Can be experienced in the days after heavy training. Can be physical but also mental tiredness. Sleeping well after training is important.
  • Light-headedness : Experienced in the hours after training. Usually a sign of dehydration or low energy stores.
  • Nausea: Feeling of sickness that can take place during the hours or days after intense physical exercise. Athletes need to try and refuel.
  • DOMS: Occurs when muscles experience pain for 24-48 hours after intense exercise due to microscopic tears in muscle fibres.
• Long term effects of exercise on the body systems:

  • Cardiac hypertrophy; capillarisation at the lungs and muscles; increase in red blood cells.
  • Increased number of functioning alveoli; increased strength of intercostals and diaphragm.
  • Increased tolerance to lactic acid.
  • Muscle hypertrophy; increased strength of tendons and ligaments.
  • Increase in bone density.
  • Increase in strength, flexibility, speed, and muscular endurance.
• Cardiac Hypertrophy:

  Where the ventricle wall gets larger or thickens as a result of exercise. The muscle wall of the left ventricle increases in size, meaning it can pump out more blood during each contraction, increasing the stroke volume.
• Capillarisation:

  The process where new capillaries are formed. Takes place at the alveoli in the lungs and at the skeletal muscle. Has the effect of increasing the amount of oxygen that can be transferred to the working muscles as well as increasing the amount of carbon dioxide that can be removed.