In excerpt from my book, MISLED By Rick Schaff Here are some interesting things to consider when exercising: Exercise can be UN-HEALTHY if you aren’t aware of potential risks that may be involved. An essential thing to consider when you exercise is that you breathe more deeply and more frequently. With that in mind, you must make sure you are not filling your lungs with toxic air. It is always very important to breathe the freshest air possible, but particularly imperative while training. One of the biggest mistakes I see people make every day is jogging or biking along a busy street. When you exercise along the side of a busy street you directly inhale exhaust fumes from automobile, which contain deadly carcinogens. It’s common sense that breathing in pollutants like lead from the tailpipe of an automobile is not going to have positive ramifications on your health. Additionally, some research reveals that ultra-fine particles emitted from exhaust pipes can become embedded deep in the lungs and become a particular danger to those who have heart disease. These ultra-fine particles can stimulate arrhythmic heartbeats, thereby disrupting the heart’s ability to regulate proper blood pumping.
In an article appearing in the Los Angeles Times, Air Pollution May Trigger Sudden Death, Marla Cone reports that experts have estimated that particulate pollution may cause one percent of heart disease fatalities in the United States. This may seem like a small fraction, but it equates to approximately 10,000 needless deaths a year. The most popular theory as to how this occurs is that particles enter the lungs, and stimulate the nervous system to reflexively send impulses to the nerve center in the heart that controls contractions, which disrupts the heart rate and leads to problems. If you are someone who likes to exercise outside try to find a place with the least amount of traffic, like a park, along a lake, the ocean, or a quiet street. Furthermore, when training in health clubs, look for clubs that have open windows that allow fresh air to circulate if possible. Remember, outside air is usually less toxic than inside air. Health clubs often use harsh cleaners due to health code violations. If you’re training and smell a strong amount of chemicals in the air I would recommend staying as far away from them as possible. Taking deep breaths of harsh cleaning chemicals is not in your best interest. When training in a health club we have to keep in mind that people may carelessly track germs on the equipment we use. Sweat, blood, pet waste – God knows what else. That said, it would be a good idea to avoid touching your eyes, nostrils and mouth with your hands when training in a gym. When you are done remember to wash your hands with hot soapy water before leaving to kill germs! Do not allow yourself to put someone’s sick, sweaty germs in your eyes or mouth. That is the easiest way for germs to invade your body.
I know these are all things we usually never think about, but they are very important if you want to remain your healthiest. Being aware of potential problems like these can have a significant impact on your health. If anyone has some good observations on this topic please share so we can all benefit.