Exercise physiologists study an expansive field grounded in medical knowledge and scientific studies yet allow for personal preferences and decisions based on personal whim.
Strength
Exercise physiology SA is often mistaken for other fields, such as sports medicine, kinesiology, and fitness. Although these areas share many similarities, each has a specific focus. While it’s not unusual for professionals to pursue multiple careers simultaneously, an exercise physiologist must know the differences between each study and their impact on one another.
Studies that combine endurance and strength training demonstrate their benefits are comparable. Endurance exercises typically entail performing low loads for extended periods, while strength training involves loading muscles almost to failure with heavy loads. As a result, studies comparing these exercise types (endurance vs strength training) reveal similar gains.
An exercise physiology SA degree qualifies an individual to become a personal trainer, an excellent way to assist others in improving their health and fitness. Furthermore, this degree can open doors into physical therapy aide positions or further studies such as medicine, nursing, physician assistant studies or rehabilitation health science – plus clinical exercise physiologists provide supervised exercise programs to patients suffering chronic medical concerns.
Endurance
No matter what endurance training means to you – running long-distance races or triathlons, swimming, cycling, or simply enjoying a stroll around your neighbourhood – endurance exercise will improve performance. Endurance exercises involve repetitive movement with a relatively low intensity that often takes the form of continuous or interval activity.
Strength training utilises various exercises and techniques to increase your muscles’ power during activities, helping you cross the finish line or climb hills more quickly. Another relatively recent concept in strength training is concurrent training; this involves combining endurance and strength exercises to maximise athletic performance.
Exercise physiology SA encompasses biology, anatomy and kinesiology sciences and their application to enhance health, fitness and performance for all individuals. A degree in this field could open doors to careers as an individualised health and fitness trainer, sports medicine specialist, or physician’s assistant.
Cardiovascular Health
Physical exercise often aims to increase cardiovascular endurance or the capacity for continuous moderate-to-high-intensity physical activity over an extended period. Activities like running, cycling and swimming all count towards this goal. Regular cardio can strengthen heart muscles and blood vessels, lower resting heart rates, and decrease risks for certain health conditions.
Regular aerobic exercise has decreased the prevalence of many diseases, including heart disease. This effect is likely caused by its ability to increase blood flow and vasodilatory effects – specifically the release of nitric oxide – as well as lower blood pressure and improve insulin sensitivity, plasma lipoproteins levels, and other vascular risk factors.
Cardiovascular exercise is essential to your overall well-being as it trains your body to utilise oxygen efficiently by teaching the respiratory (lungs), cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and musculoskeletal systems. Each of these systems works together to provide oxygen and energy to muscles during workouts, helping reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease caused by high cholesterol, blood pressure, and obesity. Furthermore, regular cardio exercise helps lower risk.
Weight Loss
Exercise physiologists play an integral part in helping their clients lose weight or enhance athletic performance, so exercise physiologists must have an in-depth knowledge of how different forms of training affect the body. For example, when healthy individuals participate in long-term aerobic exercise programs, their muscles experience positive cardiac adaptations that increase glycogen storage capacity while decreasing resting heart rate – changes that can improve performance by increasing the ability to perform at higher intensities.
Exercise physiologists need to have an in-depth knowledge of the physiological effects of exercise and the ability to communicate effectively with their clients. In addition, since they regularly come into contact with people experiencing painful or embarrassing health challenges, exercise physiologists must be sympathetic and compassionate towards these clients.
Mental Health
Exercise has long been considered an integral component of a healthy lifestyle, dating back to ancient Greece when Hippocrates was one of the first physicians to recommend moderate physical activity to improve health.
Human brains rely on aerobic metabolism for oxygen supply, making them highly sensitive to any interruption to this system. Without enough oxygen, brain function will quickly shut down within six to seven seconds and shutting off entirely will occur within minutes.
Exercise physiologists work in clinical settings with people suffering from chronic illnesses or disabilities to help improve their quality of life through physical activity. In addition, exercise physiologists assist amateur and professional athletes with increasing performance.
