As with all sports and at all levels, some people have to work harder than others to succeed and football is full of professionals whose determination to succeed has more than made up for their lack of natural ability. On the other hand, there are also many examples of very talented footballers who have relied too much on natural talent and never fulfilled their potential.

The reason for shortness of breath is because as we begin to exercise, the body uses more energy. When exercising, the muscles’ demand for oxygen dramatically increases and in order to maintain the energy level required the lungs will increase the rate at which they inhale and exhale in an attempt to increase the amount of oxygen being provided. Regular exercise will reduce this shortness of breath as we begin to improve our lung capacity and efficiency (rate of ventilation). The rate of ventilation refers to the amount of air inhaled or exhaled in one minute. When resting, a typical rate would be 5 litres per minute, however during a match a professional footballer can have demands as high as 200 litres per minute.

REGULAR EXERCISE = LUNGS INCREASING THEIR VENTILATION RATES

LEADING TO FEWER BREATHS NEEDED TO MAINTAIN THE OXYGEN LEVELS NEEDED (ALLOWING PLAYERS TO MAINTAIN HIGHER ENERGY LEVELS FOR LONGER).

During exercise your heart rate increases to pump more blood to the muscles all over the body. The amount of blood pumped out of the heart with each contraction is known as the stroke volume. An average adult ‘s stroke volume is about 70ml. At rest, heart rate can be as low as 30 beats per minute in well trained athletes. Most people have a resting heart rate of 60 beats per minute. Cardiac output refers to the amount of blood that is pumped per minute by the heart. This is an indication of the rate of oxygen delivery to the exercising skeletal muscles.

CARDIAC OUTPUT = STROKE VOLUME X HEART RATE

When the heart is exercised regularly it becomes larger and the volume of the chambers increases as does the stroke volume. The heart of a trained athlete can pump more blood, and therefore more oxygen and nutrients, to the working muscles in the body on each contraction.

The internal temperature of the body is often referred to as the core temperature, typically 36.5-37.5C. As we exercise the heat generated warms up the muscles which function best at 38.5C.

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