Saturday, June 20, 2020

Bad golfers and slow runners

We have had one inch of rain since May 20. We MIGHT get some tomorrow or Monday.

I went for a run today. I clocked an honest five miles. That is a break-through distance for me. It seems like my ability to add distance increases rapidly once I hit the five mile mark.

It was 80F at the end of my run.

Like a rotten golfer bragging that he gets more golf for his money than the good golfers, slow runners (like me) get to brag about how many minutes of elevated heart-rate we get per mile we run.

One of the thoughts that occurred to me as I ran was that singers, demonstrators and people who are working out have one thing in common: We gulp air through our mouths.

Covid-19 has shown a particular affinity for choirs, for instance. In order to inhale enough air in the short pause between lines, singers gulp a huge slug of air through their mouth.

Air inhaled through the nose is much more filtered than air sucked in through our mouths. The resistance is roughly proportional to the amount of baffling and hairs and bends the air must pass through, surfaces intended to filter contaminants.

Shouting slogans at a demonstration is the same kind of thing. Bellowing chants in unison requires the demonstrator to gulp air.

Ditto for working out. Other than stretching, if you are not increasing your air intake then you aren't exercising

So the moral of this short essay is that you should avoid mouth-breathers for your safety and theirs.

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