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Unit 2 - Describe the Cardio Respiratory systems acute response to exercise.

By Ben Jenkins 13AM

In this assignment I will create an email which will be sent to my training partner. My training partner has noticed vast improvements in my training and has asked me if I could share some knowledge with them. I will focus on the cardio vascular and respiratory system. I will cover the following; Heart Rate VO2 maximum Blood pressure Venous return Vasodilation and vasoconstriction Breathing Rate Tidal volume

1.3 Cardio Vascular & Respiratory Response


During exercise your contracting muscles require a continual supply of nutrients and oxygen so that energy can be produced for kinetic movement. As a result of this, the heart has to beat harder and faster to meet these increased demands. If an athlete continues to train the heart will become stronger.

Heart Rate The first change I will talk about is increased heart rate. Before exercise even begins heart rate increases in anticipation. This is known as the anticipatory response. After the initial increase heart rate increases in direct proportion to exercise intensity until a maximum heart rate is reached.

Maximum heart rate is estimated with the formula 220-age. But this is only an estimation, and not particularly accurate. http://www.sport-fitness advisor.com/cardiovascular-system-and-exercise.html The only direct method for determining maximum heart rate is to exercise at increasing intensities. Therefore heart rate must increase so that it can deliver oxygen to and from the muscles and can deliver nutrients and fuel to the working tissues. This works in direct relation to the respiratory system, as they respiratory system works to get more and more oxygen into the body, and the cardio vascular system is responsible for transporting this oxygen to the muscles. Cardiac output will increase as a result of increased heart rate and stroke volume. In essence, this means that the heart is beating faster and more blood is being pumped for every beat. Cardiac output is monitored over a one minute time frame. VO2 Max The next change is that the VO2 max increases as a result of acute exercise. VO2 max refers to the maximal oxygen consumption in one minute. This increases during exercise. This is because heart rate and breathing rate increase resulting in more oxygen coming in and going out. The muscles are desperate for more oxygen as this will give them energy to move. It needs to be removed quickly as this will prevent the build up of waste products affecting efficiency. Those who are fit have higher VO2 max values and can exercise more intensely than those who are not as well conditioned. Numerous studies show that you can increase your VO2 max by working out at an intensity that raises your heart rate to between 65 and 85% of its maximum for at least 20 minutes three to five times a week. A mean value of VO2 max for male athletes is about 3.5 litres per minute

and for female athletes it is about 2.7 litres per minute. http://www.brianmac.co.uk/vo2max.htm. Blood Pressure We will also see a significant change in our blood pressure when we begin to exercise. Blood pressure is the pressure of blood against the walls of your arteries. The pressure is created from more blood being pumped from the heart and also as the arteries resist blood flow. This results in a build up of pressure. The mechanisms in the nervous system detect these changes and react to restrict letting the pressure getting too high. Eventually these mechanisms will bring the blood pressure down. During exercise systolic pressure, the pressure during contraction of the heart (known as systole) can increase to over 200 mmHg and levels as high as 250 mmHg. Diastolic pressure on the other hand remains relatively unchanged regardless of exercise intensity. In fact an increase of more than 15 mmHg as exercise intensity increases can indicate coronary heart disease. Vasodilation & Vasoconstriction During exercise the vascular portion of active muscles through the dilation of arterioles, involving an increase in the diameter of the blood vessels and resulting in an increased blood flow to the muscles. This is called vasodilation. Arterioles which lead to working muscles increase the diameter of their blood vessels so that a larger quantity of blood can pass through at once.

Vessels can also shut down blood flow to tissues that are not needed when we exercise e.g. the liver and stomach. The body can temporarily lessen the blood supply to these organs. This involves a decrease in the diameter of the blood vessels. This process is known as vasoconstriction. It is said that at rest 80% of blood goes to our organs, and just 20% to our resting muscles. However, during exercise it is the opposite. 80% goes to the working muscles that are in need of energy and 20% goes to the organs which are not really needed at the time. Venous Return Another change is venous return. Venous return is the flow of blood back to the heart. Under steady-state conditions, venous return must equal cardiac output. When averaged over time because the cardio vascular system is essentially a closed loop. Otherwise, blood would accumulate in either the systemic or pulmonary circulations. Although cardiac output and venous return are interdependent, each can be independently regulated. We have a muscle pump and baroreceptors in place to assist venous return. The muscle pump can increase venous return during exercise by shunting blood back to the heart. Gravity does not help venous return and therefore various mechanisms are in place. It increases as a direct result of more blood being sent to the working muscles. Once the oxygenated blood has exchanged oxygen for CO2, the veins are responsible for taking the deoxygenated blood back.

Breathing Rate Exercise results in an increase in the rate and depth of our breathing. This is due to the fact that the working muscles demand more oxygen and need to get rid of the waste products built up in muscle fibres. At first there is a minor increase in our breathing before we even start exercising. This is known as an anticipatory rise. When we actually start to exercise there is an immediate and significant increase in the rate of our breathing. After several minutes of exercise breathing will continue to rise but at a slower rate. If you are exercising at maximal intensity, the rate will continue to rise until it reaches the point of exhaustion. Once exercise is completed, breathing will return to normal. The quicker it returns to resting rate, the fitter the individual is. This is known as recovery rate. Neural & Chemical control Breathing is a complex process which involves voluntary and involuntary control. There is an area in the brain which controls the respiratory system. It is known as the respiratory control centre. It involves inspiration and expiration. Inspiration is an active process, whereas expiration is a passive process Your respiratory control centre sits at the bottom of your brain in an area called the medulla oblongata. The medulla oblongata connects directly to your spinal cord and contains two types of nerve cells collectively known as neurones. Your inward breaths are controlled by cells called inspiratory neurones, while your outward breaths fall under the control of your expiratory neurones. To perform their work and properly regulate your breathing patterns, your neurones depend on information received from several different areas in your body.

There are two neural mechanisms that govern respiration - one for voluntary breathing and one for automatic breathing. The voluntary impulse originates in the cerebral cortex region of the brain and the automatic impulse originates in the medulla oblongata. There are chemoreceptors in the brain and the heart that sense the amount of oxygen, carbon dioxide and acid present in the body. As a result, they moderate the respiratory rate to properly compensate for any disruptions in balance of any of these chemicals. Too much carbon dioxide or acidity and too little oxygen cause the respiratory rate to increase and vice versa. Carbon dioxide chemoreceptors are much more sensitive than oxygen chemoreceptors and, thus, exert an effect with smaller changes.

Tidal volume This refers to the amount of air breathed in and out with each breath. During exercise it increases to allow more air to pass through the lungs. This is increased by aerobic exercise. This is because oxygen is depleted in your body. The muscles are crying out for oxygen to fuel them so a deeper tidal volume is carried out to compensate. Your lungs do this by bringing in fresh air with every breath; this amount is measured in part by the tidal volume. During exercise, your body's production of carbon dioxide goes up. Increasing tidal volume is one way for your lungs to accommodate the exhalation of this increased carbon dioxide load.

Bibliography;
http://www.sport-fitnessadvisor.com/cardiovascular-system-and-exercise.html http://www.brianmac.co.uk/vo2max.htm Google images & Class notes

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