Exercise and Staying in Shape For Asthma Person

Because asthma primarily affects the lungs, throat and occasionally the nose,

strenuous exercise or any physical activity that requires a rise in heart rate and breathing rate may cause you to suffer from a number of the classic asthma symptoms, such as tightness of the chest and difficulty catching your breath. For this reason you need to experiment to find out your own personal limitations with regards to how much physical exercise you can tolerate.

For obvious reasons, you must start off gently - the last thing you need is to trigger an attack. It is advised that you begin with a gentle walk on a fine day, as any exercise in cold air may do more harm than good. Leading on from this you can either walk further and for longer each trip or you can try walking faster so that your heart rate becomes slightly more raised each time. If your asthma is mild, you might prefer to jog or swim on alternate days rather than simply walk, and you can continue to add minutes to your daily workout routine until you begin to feel that it is affecting your breathing.

It is important that you do perform some kind of physical activity everyday in order to keep your lungs in the best possible shape. Even though your airways are affected by allergens and other irritants, and you need medication to keep them working properly, your lungs need to be kept in shape in other ways. By doing this you may find that your asthma affects you less and as your lungs grow stronger you are able to do things that you couldn’t originally do.

Activities that are suitable for most asthmatics include swimming, cycling, slow jogging and even light aerobics. You should consult with your doctor before starting any exercise program and take things easy until you discover your limits. If after a few sessions you find that all exercise is beyond you then you can try other activities that will help to strengthen your lungs and the associated muscles without any strain. For example:

* Yoga not only tones muscles and teaches you to breathe properly, it also allows you to relax and forget your worries and concerns. Stress and emotions are known to be a trigger in some asthmatics, however practicing yoga can help to release stress and control your emotions.
* Breathing exercises are great for strengthening the lungs and the airways that lead to the lungs. Practicing specific exercises each day, regardless of where you are or what you are doing, will help to condition the lungs and prepare them for physical activity. Because you can do breathing exercises while sitting or lying down you can literally do them anywhere, and the more you do them the stronger your lungs will become.

By strengthening the lungs you will find that physical activity becomes easier, and you can achieve more and more each week. It is important, however, not to force yourself to do too much too soon, as this can actually make your problem worse. If you don’t like formal exercise then you may want to try something else, like playing with your children or walking the dog. Whatever you do that causes your lungs to work more than they do at rest will ultimately help. For your own safety, it must be stressed that you should talk to your family doctor before embarking on any program of physical activity.

Exercise also helps you to feel better within your self, and the more confident and fit you are the easier you will find it to cope with your asthma. Exercise is crucial to everyone, and in particular asthmatics, so anything that is more strenuous than sitting in front of the TV will undoubtedly help, providing you only go as far as your lungs will allow.