Can Exercise Repair Your Lungs Faster When You Stop Smoking?

Smoking can contribute to a vast array of health issues including circulatory disorders, stroke, heart attack and emphysema. However, in an article in the 2006 journal "Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention," it was shown that exercise can reduce the risk of cardiovascular events and lung cancer in women if it is a part of the regular activity level even if the smoking continues. Thus, participating in exercise after smoking cessation can help to prevent health risks associated with smoking. Beyond that, you can improve your overall endurance and some lung capacity with exercise to help you advance your quality of life after you quit smoking.

Expand Your Lungs

• A study reported in a 2006 "American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care" showed that your lungs begin to improve after only seven days of smoking cessation. And although it will take time, often up to one year, for the cilia in your lungs to rebuild and recover, you can improve your lung function through exercise. Because you will be forcibly expanding your lungs as you breathe deeply during aerobic exercise, you can improve your lung capacity, or the amount of air that your lungs can inhale and the amount of blood gases your lungs can exchange with each breath. This improved lung function leads to decreased shortness of breath.

Improved Peripheral Vascular Functioning

• Even if you are suffering from smoking-related lung disease such as emphysema, lung cancer or chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, you can still improve your overall health and reduce your shortness of breath upon exertion, thus advancing your physical fitness through exercise. Although in some cases you may not be able to correct the damage to your lungs, the exercise can help you to improve your circulatory system. As your body builds more capillaries to accommodate for increased physical exercise, your body will be able to exchange the blood gases in your muscles more effectively, allowing fresh oxygen to reach your muscles and, more importantly, facilitating the removal of carbon dioxide, which is usually a large contributor to shortness of breath and fatigue.

Ramp Up the Aerobics

• Aerobic exercise is one of the most impactful tools that you have to improve your health and fitness, especially after you have quit smoking. Walking briskly, running, swimming and cycling are all effective at improving lung and circulatory function. You may find that swimming in particular will help you to improve your lung function, as swimmers' lungs use oxygen three times more effectively. After you have improved your fitness level to tolerate 40 minutes of exercise, begin adding one-minute bursts of moderate- to high-intensity activity every five minutes to further improve your lung capacity and efficiency.

Considerations

• See your doctor before beginning any physical fitness routine, especially if you have shortness of breath with mild activity. You need to be examined to ensure that you do not have a life-threatening physical condition, such as lung cancer. Take care during your exercises to ensure that you are not overdoing it. You should always be able to speak at least five words without taking a breath. Give yourself and your lungs time to recover and recuperate from the damaging effects of smoking. Consult with a cardiac rehabilitation physical or occupational therapist if you are concerned about devising a safe exercise plan.