Hunt Preparation, Carbonation and Lung Capacity, etc., etc.

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tapehoser

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I am right in the middle of training for the elk hunt in October. This morning I ran 1.5 miles with my hunting boots and an 8-pound pack on. By the time the elk hunt comes around I should be up to around a 25-pound pack and running 2.5 miles.

Anyhoo, I digress.

I drink a fair amount of carbonation every day. If it were averaged out it would probably be about 12 ounces of carbonated beverage each day.

I have heard folks spout off crap about carbonation affecting your lung capacity but have never seen any concrete medical proof. DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY HARD FACTS ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT CARBONATION AFFECTS LUNG CAPACITY?

Any information or personal experiences are appreciated.

Also, what do you do to get ready for the hunts?
 
LAST EDITED ON Aug-29-06 AT 10:18AM (MST)[p]I thought it has nothing to do with lungs, but rather it replaces oxygen in your blood, reducing the amount of oxygen that feeds your body.

Pretty sure I can find an article on it... hang on

EDIT: found this:

"In blood increased CO2 causes increased H+ ion concentration. This happens as a result of following reaction: H2O + CO2 --> H2CO3 --> H+ & HCO3- But the blood has very efficient buffering capacity for such changes in pH. Now coming to the point, much of CO2 in the beverages (that we take in) makes flatus (gas in Gastro intestinal tract) which is expelled either orally or anally. The amounts that are still able to get absorbed through the intestinal cells into the blood are not able to cause any significant and disastrous changes in blood pH because of 1) effective buffering in the blood and because of 2) weak acidic nature of CO2. Secondly CO2 level when increased in blood causes removal of oxygen from hemoglobin i.e. it decreases the oxygen carrying capacity of the blood slightly and this effect is called Bohr?s effect. "


-DallanC
 
I've heard that carbonated drings add carbon dioxide to your system which needs to be expelled through your lungs so you breath a little harder. Giving up carbonated drings is like quiting smoking. It's hard, but nothing but good will come from it. The body needs water, but it is your addiction that needs pop. Good luck.
 
Another issue is HOW LONG does the effect last? If I drink a carbonated drink, will it affect my body 12 hours later? 24 hours later? The body must exchange/replace oxygen and carbon dioxide in the body several times in one day.

Just wondering...
 
My son's cross-country/track coach says NO carbonation for his runners. Local university track coach says same thing. Don't know exactly what they feel the negative's are but every track coach my son has had says the same thing.

Phantom Hunter
 
I think the thing you have to take in account is that this information is geared towards elite athletes. We're talking about sprinters who are trying to shave 1/10 of second off their time or a long distance runner looking for enough energy to have a final sprint at the end of an 8 mile race.

Unless you are in that category I don't think it will effect you enough to make a difference. You keep doing what you are doing and you will be ready to go. I commend you on having the disipline to work out for your hunt. I'd make sre that your runs include uneven terrains where different muscles will be put into play due to inclines and declines that won't be used in normal run.

Rackem

***************************************************************
?Just think of how stupid the average person is, and then realize half of them are even stupider!?
~George Carlin
 
I've never heard of the risk of reduced lung capacity due to drinking soda. However, there other other negatives associated with it's use. Here's an excerpt from the Washington Post:

"The study of more than 50,000 U.S. nurses found that those who drank just one serving of soda or fruit punch a day tended to gain much more weight than those who drank less than one a month, and had more than an 80 percent increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, the most common form of the disease. The risk pertained to drinks sweetened with either sugar or high-fructose corn syrup."


I gave up drinking soda about 10 years ago (I do too many other things that will get me fat, already.) I only drink water or unsweetened iced tea as soft drinks now.

Sounds like you've got a good workout regime started. The most important part is that you keep it up and consistently do it. Keep pushing your limits a little each day - you'll be thankful for it when the hunt starts and you're hustling to get into position for a shot at that bull.

I've been jogging for the last 6 weeks to increase my lung capacity. I started doing 2 miles, and now am up to 5. I'm getting ready to push it to 7. Anytime I want to quit, I just imagine that there's a big bull waiting for me over the next ridge that I have to get to. On the days I don't run, I usually go for a 3 mile walk with my wife, with weight in my pack and ankle weights on to simulate my boots.

Good luck to you on your hunt and getting in shape.
 
I too am preparing for a high mountain elk hunt in October. I run on a treadmill, and I prop open Jim Zumbo's Elk Hunting (from the Complete Hunter series of books) to some nice picture of an elk in the high country and look at this while running. When my lungs are rebelling and my legs are getting that rubbery feeling and sweat is running down into my eyes and dropping off onto the treadmill I just look harder at the picture of that elk. Any physical training is a good investment to be ready for your hunt.

An interesting piece of advice I read on a hunting forum was to take two days off a week to rest and allow your muscles to recover. The guy who posted this message said this was advice from physical trainers that he knew and also from body builders. I use an 8-day schedule: 6 days of exercise followed by two days of rest. I run every other day; I strength train on days that I don't run during the 6 days of exercise. Also, this same guy recommended making sure you eat enough protein, for example taking a protein powder blended with water or skim milk. I was persuaded by this protein advice because I was feeling muscle pains that I couldn't explain by the stress of my workouts -- the level of effort was not significantly greater. I was dieting at the same time to bring my weight down, and I think I was not "feeding my muscles" enough given the exercise program I was following.
 
I agree with rackem, there's probably not going to be a ton of difference in your endurance. I know of marathoners who love soda pop and would drink it before a run. A lot of where you make gains will be in how you train. Remeber the old drill instructor who smoked a filterless Pall Mall and ran 10 miles kicking the soldiers butts the whole way.
If you train hard, you'll be just fine. I'd say the bad thing about the soda is the high fructose corn syrup, not the carbonation.
 
That's it!!! I just threw what was left of my 32oz dew in the garbage and I'm off the pop (again). I'm not going to drink another one (for at least an hour).

Seriously, the diabetes thing is a little spooky. I really did throw my 3/4 full pop in the trash too. :) Now if I can just stay away from the crap I'll be doing good. For 26 years I never wanted the stinking stuff. Ever since I started drinking it about 5 years ago I've struggled with trying to quit. It's the same thing each year. I quit for 3 or 4 months during the hunts and as soon as they are over I go right back at it. It's almost as addicting as crack, almost... I wish I'd of never started the stuff. I wish I wouldn't have started drinking pop either... :)

Good luck with your hunts,

NvrEnuf
 
I think that the sugar, and acid's in most sodas are far more damaging to your body and endurance then carbonation. Like what has already been said I think that unless you are competing, carbonation doen't really matter, what is important is that your body fat is low, your legs are strong and your lungs are conditioned.
 
I just got an email from a friend who's a respiratory therapist and knows ALL about this stuff. Here's what he said...

"My initial reaction is "ain't no way"!
Carbon dioxide, the exact same gas used in carbonation, is a natural by-product in the human body. I mean, we expell it in every breath. Yes, too high a level can lead to acidosis (it forms carbonic acis and is an integral part of maintaining the body's acid-base balance) Too low a level can lead to respitory alkalosis which can lead to cramps (Ever seen someone hyperventilating start cramping up? Starts with the fingers/hands and if untreated they end up curled into a fetal position).

"A small amount in your stomach shouldn't affect your lungs in the least. You're going to belch it out in short order anyway.

"For the brief time (1 breath) you have some extra co2 in your mouth and airway, it might SLIGHTLY decrease the percentage of oxygen in a particular breath, but not enough to be clinically significant. "
 

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