Fit Not Fad: Body Changes From Exercise
Join Bianca as she discusses the physiological changes the human body can go through, as a result of exercise, in the fourth episode of the Fit Not Fad podcast.
Bianca: Hi guys and welcome to episode 4 of the Fit not Fad podcast. If you’re a regular listener, thank you for tuning in again. And if you’re new to the podcast, I’m glad you decided to give this a try!
Today’s topic will get a little science-y but in my opinion, it will be very cool at the same time. In this episode you’ll learn about how your body adapts to exercise, basically how exercise changes your body on the inside and on the outside.
I picked this topic because of my background in physiology. But you might not know what physiology is. Physiology is a branch of biology that studies how a living system functions. That encompasses every little process that happens in your body, from blood flowing through your veins, to your muscles contracting together at the same time so you can stand up and start walking. But we’re not going to talk about every single physiological process in the body. We will only focus on what happens due to regular physical activity...so exercising.
First of all, when we talk about how the body responds to exercise we have two different time frames to look at: during and after exercise, and long term. These are very different from each other, but obviously you can not achieve the long term adaptations without the short-term responses.
So we will call the short-term changes “responses” because it’s a more accurate description of what happens. During exercise your body responds to the exertion and makes very quick, temporary but impactful adaptations.
Your Body Burns More Fuel
First big adaptation is your total energy expenditure. This is how much energy you use, how much fuel you burn, in order to keep moving at the intensity that you do. Your total energy expenditure during exercise increases between 15 to 25 times above your expenditure at rest.
Your heart also pumps more blood throughout your body, quickly. Speaking of blood, another cool thing happens when you’re exercising. Blood is redirected from inactive body organs and systems into your active muscles so the muscles receive more oxygen and nutrients. And since your heart is working so hard to pump that blood quickly and effectively, your exercise blood pressure also increases. This is a very normal response, so there is no need to be alarmed.
Your Body Works to Regulate Temperature
One thing we know about muscles is that they produce heat when they’re activated. Now it makes sense that heat production is also increased during exercise. It actually increases by 1 degree Celsius every 5 to 7 minutes. Things can get pretty warm, but your clever body knows how to lower body temperature when necessary, through sweating. Blood flow to the skin is also increased during physical activity for that exact reason, so sweating is a good response to prevent reaching a dangerous body temperature.
Your Muscles Get Big, Instantly
Another quick thing I want to mention before we move on to long term adaptations is that during exercise, you may experience something called “transient hypertrophy”. In other words, your muscles look bigger temporarily and this happens due to fluid accumulation in the muscles.
Now let’s talk long term. We all know by now that exercising leads to health, and for the most part, almost everybody understands how exercise helps prevent obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension…but what are the small changes that lead to the great benefits?
Your Body Burns More Energy, Longer
Regular physical activity leads to increased muscle strength and muscle growth in size. This leads to improved energy expenditure long term. The more muscle mass you have, the more energy demanding your workout sessions become. Makes sense. Stronger and bigger muscles demand more fuel.
Your Body Creates More Blood & Gets Better at Moving It
Next chronic adaptation we’re going to talk about is your cardiorespiratory efficiency. We’re talking about VO2 max. Through regular physical activity including cardio and resistance training of course, your heart and blood vessels get stronger and more efficient. This means they don’t have to work so hard all the time. Your left ventricle, the part of the heart that actually pumps the blood out and through the body becomes stronger.
And since we’re talking about cardiovascular benefits and adaptations, you should know that regular exercise results in increased blood volume and up to 20% more plasma volume in your blood, and increase in red blood cells as expected and even the development of additional vasculature throughout the body.
If you’re wondering how growing new blood vessels makes any sense, think about it: your muscles are active more frequently and for longer periods of time. That means more oxygen and nutrients are necessary to maintain muscle health and function. It’s supply and demand. The more you workout, the more active you become, the more your vascular your muscles will need.
And some benefits I haven’t mentioned but should be well known by now include improved blood pressure and heart rate, increased strength and muscle mass.
Your Bones Get Stronger
Thanks to regular exercising, your bones also become stronger and are able to withstand heavier loads. This becomes especially important for women as they age and hit menopause. When women reach menopause, estrogen production is decreased. This is significant because estrogen is linked to bone density.
Resistance training, and occasionally even high impact training, is recommended to strengthen your bones. OUr bones respond to impact. The more we test them and the more pressure we put on them, the stronger they must get.
Careful with the high impact exercises. You want to work closely with a professional on that to make sure you stay safe and are even allowed to do that.
You May Extend Your Life
Last but not least, you may just live longer. Your body’s chronological age is one thing, but exercising can improve your metabolic age.
I could go into more depth about some additional adaptations, but then we’d be getting really science-y.
At the end of the day, I’d like people to understand that exercising is not punishment. It shouldn’t feel like a chore. Go into it thinking about the positive things you’re doing for your health. Try and learn a new exercise every week and add some diversity to your workouts! Our bodies are complex machines capable of many impressive things. We just have to challenge them.
That’s all I have for you guys today! I hope you learned something new and if you’re just as excited about fun anatomy and physiology facts, please share with a fellow fitness enthusiast, if not, still share! Until next time.
