AgesKnowledge
11–14 Card
Ages 11–14
How your lungs work
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© Rolf Adlercreutz/Alamy
Why is breathing
so important
for sport and
movement?
Breathing is vital in order to stay alive. But
did you know that you can actually train your
‘breathing’ to help increase how well you do
at sport?
The function of your lungs
is to take oxygen into
your blood and remove
carbon dioxide.
ribs
Oxygen is then used
by your body to
diaphragm
release energy from
muscle
food.
Oxygen
that is taken in
during breathing is
used for respiration,
which releases
energy.
© Fogstock/plainpicture
muscles
contract and
relax
air goes in and out
muscles
contract and
relax
glucose
oxygen
glucose
glucose + oxygen
oxygen
energy
released
ribs
carbon dioxide
glucose + oxygen
+ water
energy
released
diaphragm
muscle
carbon dioxide
+ water
Aerobic respiration is a reaction
that happens in the cells.
carbon dioxide
Breathing is the way that air is
forced in and out of the lungs.
carbon dioxide
Breathing is the way that air is
forced in and out of the lungs.
Aerobic respiration is a reaction
that happens in the cells.
© George S de Blonsky/Alamy
Whatever type of exercise,
whether an Olympic sport
or a dance class, the way
you breathe will affect how
well you can perform.
to your breathing
en
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ha
ld
ou
w
k
thin
if
a.What do you
uld you find out
co
ow
H
?
se
ci
er
rate when you ex
correct?
your prediction is
b.How could yo
u find out what e
ffect
exercise has on
the amount of air
you expel from yo
ur lungs?
Training your breathing
Hi, I’m Professor Alison McConnell from Brunel
University’s Centre for Sports Medicine and Human
Performance. I’m researching how sportspeople
can train their breathing in order to improve their
performance. Breathing rate is a measure of
breathing efficiency during exercise and is one
of the measurements I make to test the effect of
training on breathing.
In Experiment A you are going to measure your
breathing rate during and after various activities
to see how it varies, as well as how it compares
between people.
air goes in and out
Since ancient times, sportspeople have exercised their
muscles by lifting weights to help them to jump higher, run or
swim faster, and throw further. In the last ten years athletes
have found that training their breathing muscles also helps to
improve their performance.
One of my research studies found that after six weeks of
breathing muscle training, cyclists were able to improve the
time it took to cycle 40 km by more than 2 minutes (4.6%)1.
So it is worth us finding out more about our breathing.
www.getinthezone.org.uk
Athletes
train their
breathing muscles
to help them
improve their
performance.
© www.powerbreathe.com
Ages 11–14
Getting ‘in the zone’
In sports such as archery, accuracy is crucial; any type
of movement, including the act of breathing in and out,
can affect the archer’s aim. Archers get ‘in the zone’
and regularly perform Zen breathing where they learn
slow and deep breathing so that it doesn’t affect their
shot.
Archers
‘get in
the zone’ by
performing Zen
breathing.
A psychologist can help sportspeople to relax by
slowing their breathing down, and by deep breathing
using their diaphragm muscle rather than their chest
muscles. You can try this by taking a deep, slow
breath but trying to keep your chest still and just
using your diaphragm muscle to inhale.
Overcoming asthma
Many athletes have asthma yet still take part
in and excel in sport, such as Paula Radcliffe.
Although asthma can have many triggers,
there is evidence that taking part in sports
can actually be of benefit to people with mild
asthma. The table below shows just how
common exercise-induced asthma is amongst
athletes. Prevalence of exercise-induced
asthma in the general population is around
10%.
ntrol their
ow do different sportspeople co
c. H
ve to be
breathing? Why does breathing ha
ferent sports?
controlled in different ways for dif
© Radius Images/Corbis
Sport
Sports
psychologists help
athletes and sportspeople
prepare for the psychological
demands of competition and
help them deal with the
intense training that is
often required.
Hi, my name is Simon Drane,
I’m a sports psychologist and
spend the majority of my time
at the National Badminton
Centre working with the GB
Olympic Badminton squad. My
main role is to help athletes
get stronger mentally so that
they can perform at their best
when the pressure is on.
One of the main areas that I work in
is helping athletes to understand how
to ‘get in the zone’. The ‘zone’ is the
mental state in which athletes best
perform the task at hand. For example
a snooker player would play a difficult
shot best in a calm, relaxed manner.
However, a boxer may well need to be a
lot more energised and activated prior
to a boxing bout.
www.getinthezone.org.uk
Athletics
Badminton
Prevalence of
asthma and
exercise-induced
asthma (%)
16%
9%
Canoe/kayak
11%
Cycling
39%
Hockey
31%
Rowing
19%
Swimming
44%
Table 2: Prevalence of asthma and exercise-induced asthma
within Team GB at the 2004 Olympic Games2.
L .M. Romer, A.K. McConnell, D.A.Jones, Effects of inspiratory
muscle training on time-trial performance in trained cyclists,
Journal of Sports Sciences, 2002, 20, pp 547–562.
2
J.W. Dickinson, G. Whyte, A. McConnell, M. Harries, Impact of
changes in the IOC-MC asthma criteria: a British perspective,
Thorax, 2005, 60: 629–632.
1
AgesKnowledge
11–14 Card
Ages 14–16
In Experiment A you will investigate the relationship between
muscle size and the number of repetitions of various upper body
exercises that you can do. Experiment D focuses on the effects of
fatigue from exercise and whether fatigue is localised.
h
t
g
n
e
r
t
s
From ngth
e
r
t
s
to
How important are
muscles for sporting
success?
How muscles work
Muscles are attached to our bones by tendons. When muscles contract
they get shorter. When they do so they pull the bone they are
attached to which acts as a lever to create movement.
© Bertrand Guay/AFP/
Getty Images
© Patrik
Giardino/
Stone/Getty
Images
Is a sprinter born rather than made? We know that muscle
size and muscle type are very important for sporting
performance. The size and type of a muscle will determine
the amount of force that it can generate and for how long it can
contract before fatigue sets in.
Muscles work in ‘antagonistic muscle pairs’. This means that
one muscle pulls the bone to one position, such as the biceps
flexing the elbow to pull the forearm up. Then the other
muscle pulls on the bone to return it to the original position,
in this case the triceps extend the elbow
tendon tocontracted
straighten the arm.
biceps
tendon
The
strength of
your muscles
will affect
how well you
perform.
© Bob Thomas Sports
Photography/Getty Images
© Chris Hyde/
Getty Images
tendon
relaxed
triceps
Bent arm (contracted).
relaxed
biceps
contracted
triceps
tendon
contracted
triceps
Straight arm
(relaxed).
Muscles
work in
antagonistic
pairs.
Muscle fibre types are roughly split into two categories;
fast-twitch and slow-twitch. Fast-twitch muscle fibres
produce fast movements over short periods of time so
are ideal for events such as sprinting. Slow-twitch muscle
fibres produce slower contractions but can continue
to contract over long periods of time so are ideal for
endurance events, such as long–distance cycling or
running.
When our team of sport scientists are able to use
their understanding of the human body and how it
responds to exercise we can really help athletes go
faster, be stronger, go higher, and so push forward the
boundaries of human achievements. And that is what
makes my work so exciting.
u
activities do yo
d
n
a
s
rt
o
p
s
f
o
a.Which sorts
ell in if you had
w
rm
o
rf
e
p
ld
u
think you co
dy muscles?
large upper bo
te
re
b
Straight arm
(relaxed).
Bent arm (contracted).
My name is Steve Ingham and I am the Head of
Physiology for the English Institute of Sport. I work with
our very best athletes who are training in the hope of
winning Olympic medals.
www.getinthezone.org.uk
relaxed
triceps
contracted
biceps
tendon
Tests on retired sprinters have shown that they have
very high percentages of fast-twitch muscle fibres. The
proportion of the different muscle fibres is determined
by removing and analysing a very small section of their
muscle fibre, called a muscle biopsy. Most sprinters
who are still competing won’t agree to undergo muscle
biopsies. So, at the moment, we can only estimate what
percentage of fast-twitch muscle fibres are in Usain Bolt’s
legs!
In Experiment B you will investigate the relationship
between upper and lower body strength whilst Experiment
C focuses the investigation on whether people who are
good at power sports are also good at endurance sports.
Ages 14–16
My name is Odette Hughes and I am Associate Director of
Wayne McGregor | Random Dance. I am responsible for
the everyday artistic supervision of McGregor’s Company,
overseeing all performances, and directing all rehearsals.
Getting
‘in the zone’
For muscle endurance training, wherever possible I
would lead a circuit lap, which is purely for stamina and
endurance. It normally consists of 20–25 minutes of fastpaced exercises.
The lap would have ten exercise posts. Each dancer would
have 1 minute on each post. The exercises at each post
would consist of squats, planks, press-ups, star jumps or
skipping. After a minute on a post, we would run two laps
around the studio clockwise stopping at the next post to the
left. This would continue until the dancers have completed all
posts. The session would finish with sprinting for a further five
laps.
© Ravi Deepres/Wayne
McGregor | Random
Dance
The experiments you will be carrying out are also used on a regular
basis as a conditioning tool for athletes. Press-ups, triceps dips,
and pull-ups are good for conditioning the trunk and arms. Vertical
jumps are good for conditioning the legs. They are also used regularly
in jumping sports like basketball and volleyball to assess the
improvement of an athlete in his or her jumping abilities.
are
whether you
te
a
g
ti
s
e
v
in
you
rts?
b.How could
ndurance spo
e
r
o
r
e
w
o
p
t
good a
c.How could
you investiga
te whether fa
in one set of
tigue
muscles will
affect the
performance
of another se
t of muscles?
© Phil Walter /
Getty Images
I’m Simon Drane, I’m a sports psychologist and spend the majority
of my time at the National Badminton Centre working with the GB
Olympic Badminton squad. My main role is to help athletes get
stronger mentally so that they can perform at their best when the
pressure is on.
The Olympic athletes that I work with spend a lot of time in the gym
training the muscles that are important for their sport. It is vital
that the exercises that they perform are completed with focus and
concentration because the wrong technique could either not work
the important muscles or even result in an injury.
Before doing a specific exercise physically, I encourage them to
rehearse it mentally, by imagining it in their head. They picture
themselves doing the exercise, using all their senses including
vision, hearing, and also feeling. They try to imagine which muscles
will be moving to complete the exercise and this helps get them
ready for when they do the exercise physically. Try it for yourself.
Hi, my name is Ian Gatt. I’m a sports physiotherapist and I work as the lead
for the GB Boxing programme. My role involves working with boxers, both
male and female, to monitor their health and fitness status predominantly
through injury management.
In physiotherapy we use these experiments as part of exercise
rehabilitation to improve the strength of an injured area. Depending on
which joint or muscle is involved we would select the appropriate exercise.
© Nathan Denette/The Canadian
Press/Press Association Images
Training muscles
Resistance
training
is done to
encourage muscle
tissue to grow and
get stronger.
For all types of muscle tissue to grow and get
stronger, they need to be used in strength training
exercises. These are exercises where the muscles
work to move some form of resistance, for example,
lifting dumbbells 1.
© DNF-Style Photography/shutterstock.com
My name is Andy Shaw and I am a personal trainer to both elite and recreational athletes. I
have worked with the English Rugby Football Union (RFU) and individual rugby players. More
recently I have trained triathletes and distance runners for major events.
Unless there is a specific injury, most resistance training is done using free weights and
designed to replicate the movement pattern required. As a strength trainer it is necessary to look
at the whole picture. It is not just bigger individual muscles that make the difference but the ability
to recruit more muscles in the body, for example, a boxer’s strength initiates from the legs not the
arms.
© Andy Shaw
It is important to gradually increase frequency and intensity so as not to place undue stress on
the athlete and therefore limit the risk of injury.
www.getinthezone.org.uk
1
. Baar, Training for endurance and strength: lessons from cell signalling,
K
Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 2006, 38(11), pp 1939–44.
Ages 16–19 Knowledge Card
r
e
w
o
p
e
h
t
t
o
g
e
v
’
I
Strength, endurance
and stamina
All competitors, in any sport, need to be
in good health with excellent physical and
mental fitness. They will have been coached
and trained to increase their strength,
endurance and stamina.
In Experiment C you will investigate how the amount of carbon
dioxide in your breath changes after exercising. You will also
investigate whether the type of exercise changes the amount of
carbon dioxide in your breath.
© Tara Moore/
Most sports events use both types of energy system but in
Stone+/Getty Images
differing proportions. Sports and physical
Some activities are short, such
activities are of different durations.
as sprints, jumps and throws
but others are long such as
dancing, cross-country skiing
and marathons.
aerobic fitness – how well the circulatory
and respiratory systems transport and
the body uses oxygen during aerobic
activities.
My name is Dr Valerie Gladwell and
I am a senior lecturer in Sport and
Exercise Science at the University of
Essex. My research involves exploring
how the cardiovascular system
responds following exercise. I am also
passionate about the role physical
activity can have on health.
VO2max – the volume of oxygen that you
use while exercising at your highest level
can be used as a measure of fitness.
This is known as VO2max and is the
maximum amount of oxygen you can
use in one minute and usually takes into
account your body mass. The higher the
VO2max value the fitter a person is.
You will investigate fitness
and estimate your own
VO2max in Experiment B
using data from a step
test. You will also compare
various methods of
estimating aerobic fitness.
anaerobic threshold (AT) – the level
of exercise above which the lactic acid
produced during anaerobic respiration
starts to accumulate in the blood as it
cannot be removed quickly enough.
© Nigel Marple /
Reuters
NH2
N
N
O¯
O¯
O¯
CH
© Julie Lemberger/
Corbis
© Michael Debets/
Demotix/Corbis
© Ng Han Guan/AP/Press
Association Images
anaerobic capacity – the maximum
amount of energy that can be produced
from ATP without oxygen.
N
N
In Experiment A you will investigate how much power your muscles generate
during a stepping exercise.
There are two energy systems in the body:
long-term energy system uses aerobic
respiration.
glucose + oxygen→carbon dioxide+ water
C6H12O6 + 6O2 →6CO2 short-term energy system uses anaerobic
respiration. The lactic acid produced during
anaerobic respiration can be recycled and be
used as a fuel for aerobic respiration.
+ 6H2O
www.getinthezone.org.uk
O
P
O
O
P
O
O
P
O¯
O
adenine
CH
Energy systems and respiration
CH2
O
The universal
energy
currency
For muscles to generate power they must use
adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to contract.
Muscle cells contain a very small amount of ATP
but this can only fuel a very short burst of powered
contraction (see graph on the reverse – alactic
anaerobic respiration). For a sustained effort, more
ATP has to be produced via respiration. Anaerobic
respiration is used during the first 1–2 minutes of
exercise to meet the increased need for ATP.
OH
ribose
three phosphate groups
adenine
P
P
ribose
ATP is a small soluble molecule found
in all types of cells. It releases energy
in small manageable amounts that
will not damage cells. It is produced
during respiration and is therefore the
energy currency of the cell.
P
Ages 16–19
Training
alactic anaerobic
respiration
lactic anaerobic
respiration
% of energy supplied
During exercise, the heart rate and breathing
rate rise to try and meet the increased
demand for oxygen by the muscles and this
allows aerobic respiration to be responsible
for producing much of the extra ATP that is
required. You will investigate the effect of
exercise on heart rate in Experiment D. Aerobic
respiration makes a lot of ATP for each glucose
molecule used, whereas anaerobic respiration
makes fewer molecules of ATP per glucose
molecule but uses many glucose molecules
quickly, partially breaking them down to
pyruvate.
aerobic respiration
rs
you think i) sprinte
do
em
st
sy
gy
er
tly?
a.Which en
ts use predominan
is
cl
cy
e
nc
ta
is
-d
ng
and ii) lo
10 seconds
1 minute
3 minutes
120 minutes
b.Suggest what kind of training
each type of
sportsperson from question a) wo
uld do.
The graph shows how energy is supplied
during exercise by the immediate (alactic
anaerobic respiration), short-term (lactic
anaerobic respiration) and long-term
(aerobic respiration) energy systems.
Training fine-tunes the balance of an athlete’s
anaerobic and aerobic energy systems as well
as increasing stamina and endurance. All
sportspeople need to do strength (resistance)
training, such as squats, to increase the
strength of leg muscles; press-ups and
weightlifting to strengthen arm muscles; as
well as aerobic (cardiovascular endurance)
training, such as skipping or running, which
enables athletes’ bodies to both use oxygen
and deal with lactate more efficiently. All
types of athlete train to improve their aerobic
capacity or VO2max. Reducing the intensity
of exercise but increasing its duration
improves the efficiency of the aerobic
system 1.
My name is Jay Younger. I am 17 years old. My event is the
400 m sprint. In my first year in athletics (Under 17 level),
I became The Scottish Schools Champion and rounded
the season off by winning the AAA championships with a
personal best. I was also part of the Under 20 Scottish
4×400 m team that broke the Scottish record and I was
grateful to be given the award of Young Scottish Athlete
of the Year. This year I won the Scottish Championship
and have gathered more experience about how to
run the 400 m race more effectively. Here are some
statistics about me.
© Glow Asia/SuperStock
Height
186 cm
Sitting height
37 cm
Weight
86 kg
Resting blood pressure
153/80
Resting heart rate
55 bpm
Peak flow
700 l per minute
© SNS Group
120 bpm (1 minute)
Many athletes and coaches have devised
Recovery rate after step test
complicated training plans to encompass all
All sportspeople
parts of fitness including endurance, speed, strength and power.
do aerobic and
The type of training sportspeople do will depend upon the event
Heart rate after full squats
anaerobic training.
they are training for: sprinters need to focus on power and strength
but need a good aerobic base; for long-duration endurance athletes
the main training is stamina and endurance so their bodies are able
to produce their energy aerobically and can deal with the lactate
oxygen level, pulse
c.How would knowing blood
more efficiently. They also incorporate strength training to help to improve their
inform training
rate, and blood pressure help
performance. Many sports however, are not one or the other and require high levels
of fitness mixed with speed and strength (for example, rugby).
programmes for athletes?
1
www.getinthezone.org.uk
104 bpm (2 minutes)
80 bpm (3 minutes)
64 bpm (1 minute)
86 bpm (2 minutes)
d.How could you investigate the effect of
exercise on blood oxygen level, pulse rate,
and blood pressure?
T . Chin, S. Sawamura, H. Fujita, S. Nakajima, I. Ojima, H. Oyabu, Y. Nagakura, H. Otsuak, A. Nakagawa,
Effect of endurance training program based on anaerobic threshold (AT) for lower limb amputees,
Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development, 2001, 38(1), pp7–11.