Exercise & Lung Conditions

Lung conditions do not discriminate; they affect men, women, children, smokers, non-smokers, and people who have never smoked. Lung disease in Australia is common and often underestimated.

There are many lung conditions including but not limited to: COPD, Lung Cancer, Asthma, Bronchiectasis, Interstitial Lung diseases, Pleural Mesothelioma, Cystic Fibrosis and Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH).

Why it’s important to exercise

People who have a chronic lung condition are often less active and can lose their fitness and muscle strength. By exercising regularly, a person’s fitness and muscle strength can be maintained or improved.

Exercising for more than two hours per week performing activities such as walking or cycling, can improve the health of people with chronic lung conditions. As a result they will feel better and stay well.

People who exercise regularly can reduce their need for hospital admission. Walking is one of the most important aspects of an exercise program for respiratory health and should be combined with some weight or resistance based upper and lower limb exercises.

Exercise will help to:

• Improve your breathing
• Clear mucus (or sputum) from your chest
• Reduce your breathlessness during daily activities
• Make your heart stronger and healthier
• Increase the number of activities that you are able to do each day or each week
• Improve your balance
• Improve your mood and make you feel more in control
• Make you more independent
• Assist your weight control

Things to remember:

• Inspiratory muscle weakness is a contributor to exercise intolerance and dyspnoea in patients with lung disease. Training inspiratory muscles to resist fatigue through muscular endurance training can assist with reducing the decline in capacity and increasing exercise capacity. This will also assist in decreasing an individual’s sensitivity to dyspnoea.
• Patients with moderate to severe COPD may experience oxyhemoglobin desaturation with exercise, thus oximetry is recommended for initial exercise training and depending in the level of oxygen desaturation, oxygen supplementation may be required in the early stages of exercise.
• Persons with asthma should use inhaled bronchodilator therapy prior to exercise to reduce risk of exercise induced bronchoconstriction.
• Persons with asthma or COPD should always have a reliever e.g. Ventolin with them throughout exercise.

Types of exercises recommended

Exercise Right recommends intermittent exercise at a low intensity until you can tolerate a longer exercise duration. This could include simple exercises such as walking or cycling.

Resistance training and flexibility exercises such as Tai chi, stretching exercises of the chest and neck, strengthening exercises in low weight and high repetition of the upper, lower body and core muscles are also recommended to help you improve your functional capacity and quality of life.