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Monday, October 10, 2011

West Texas Altitude Works the Ole Lungs Harder

Went for a run tonight. Running at an altitude of 4370 ft and no humidity is a little different than running at 300ft with plenty of humidity in Mississippi.  The dry air and lower air pressure give you the feeling that your lungs are "drying" out.  I actually felt lighter running, legs felt fresh, but my lungs were on fire. 

In case you didn't know.....
The percentage of oxygen in the air at two miles (3.2 km.) is essentially the same as at sea level (21%). However, the air pressure is 30% lower at the higher altitude due to the fact that the atmosphere is less dense--that is, the air molecules are farther apart. When we breathe in air at sea level, the atmospheric pressure of about 14.7 pounds per square inch (1.04 kg. per cm.2) causes oxygen to easily pass through selectively permeable lung membranes into the blood. At high altitudes, the lower air pressure makes it more difficult for oxygen to enter our vascular systems. The result is hypoxia , or oxygen deprivation.

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