The Cardio and mask conundrum
I was talking to a friend who was annoyed with having to wear a mask during cardio exercises. (Most gyms require that). It just made sense to me, I was also definitely of the opinion that wearing a mask during cardio exercises defeats the purpose of cardio. Mainly because I had experienced it too earlier, but, I didn't have an explanation for it at the time. As humans, we like a rational explanation. On the back of my mind, this thought was running, and while buying my groceries the answer suddenly hit me. This was my mental exercise of the day. Like Feynman says, we just have to go a little deep and everything seems so beautiful. One of the main benefit of cardio exercises like running, swimming, etc. is a much improved lung capacity. It just forces you to breathe deeper. Have you ever seen a decent runner or a swimmer with a bad lung capacity ? If you measure the oxygen saturation levels of blood in a decent runner or a swimmer, it will almost always be 99 or 100....