Physical exercises improve volume?

[Tuboss2]

Hey guys, what's up? It's been a while ill admit. But I'm back with a question to ask y'all.

So, my question is do physical activity like push-ups, sit ups, running/sprints, crunches, etc improve your lung compacity? Therefore improving the volume you push out? I'd imagine that the air you use for exercising would transfer to tuba/sousaphone playing.

That's what I'd like to know, thanks guys.

[Reptilian]

Run, do situps, and don't listen to negative comments

[Biggs]

If you eat 20,000 calories a day, your volume is virtually guaranteed to increase.

[Tuboss2]

I mean like the amount of air you can take in per breath. Sorry for the confusion.

[Biggs]

The real bad news is that I know of no possible method to increase your density.

[ppalan]

Physical exercise certainly can't hurt. I'm not a physical therapist but I believe that doing exercises as you suggest as well as others can help you breathe more efficiently. (more breath more quickly) I don't think you can increase the capacity of your lungs since that is a function of their size but you can certainly learn to maximize the capacity you have. Speak with your teacher.
Pete

[brianf]

improve your lung compacity

Everyone is born with lung tissue, it is impossible to increase capacity from say 5 liters to 5.5 liters. Now shallow breathers are another thing. If you are born with a 5 liter capacity but only inhale 4 liters, you can get up to 5 liters. Shallow breathers are a dime a dozen and it gets worse as we get older. Some orchestras lowered the retirement age to 55 for brass players because of loss of capacity.

Last week I was sent to the hospital for a pulmonary function test. I was like a kid in a candy shop! The respiratory therapist told me that (at age 59) I was 98% of my projected normal. Maybe this is why many Chicago Symphony brass players are on the job into their 70's!

[MackBrass]

I am a firm believer that weight training can increase your lung capacity. I have a brother that is shorter than me and was a power lifter/ body builder for about 10 years. On day we did an experiment with blowing up baloons with one breath and his was at least 20 percent larger than what I was able to do. We then picked the tubas and he was able to hold a low CC for about 10 seconds longer than I could. What was amazing is that my brother had not picked up a tuba for about 10 years as he stopped playing after HS. Also, do a youtube search on blowing up hot water balloons, all those that do it are huge guys with an extensive weight training background. Franco Columbo was one of the first to do this back in the 70's, he was a body builder.

Weight training will expand your lung capacity over time as your body is being trained to feed your growing muscles as you are able to increase your weight lifting ability. I was never a body builder but was very phyically fit and did a lot of weight training in my younger years and feel as though I could not do some of the things I can without it. Of course, practicing will increase efficiency but weight training will increase capacity.

Sorry for any grammer issue but I don't have my glasses and can't see what I am writing.

Regards,

Tom

[MackBrass]

[/quote]

Being a "firm believer" is one thing, but backing that up with science is another. So Tom, do you have any specific scientific research regarding how exactly you expand your lung capacity?[/quote]

Of course I dont have any, I am a musician not a research scientist, but check out the following links.

http://www.criticalbench.com/increase_lung_capacity.htm" target="_blank

http://www.newhealthguide.org/How-To-In ... acity.html" target="_blank

http://www.helium.com/items/963579-Fitn ... rcise-Tips" target="_blank

http://voices.yahoo.com/improving-lung- ... 78310.html" target="_blank

Google is a great thing and there is much much more on the subject, not sure if any of the links are based on scientific research though.

Hope this helps as I am a very firm believer as I have seen it and experienced self.

Tom

[Tuboss2]

Good thought. I mean, be able to take bigger then normal breaths should be a huge help especially when playing down in the low register-pedal register. Anyways--check this vid of me out...I'd like to think I am pushing a lot of volume out in this vid, and that my breaths are pretty big. But what do y'all think?
In order to get the full sound since a sousaphone and a phone recorder aren't the best of friends--use headphones and turn the volume up all the way or put the speaker of your phone right next to your ear, and have the volume all the way up. Thanks guys. Would really appreciate feedback.


http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uGLw83J6ru8
Non mobile link: http://youtube.com/watch?v=uGLw83J6ru8

[Paul Scott]

I don't usually jump in on these questions but what the hey.

First, I concur 100% regarding the advice to consult your teacher.

Over the years I've done some experimenting with students to see if lung capacity could be increased. I assigned exercises with inspirons, voldynes, breath builders, breathing bags and the like. I used a hospital spirometer that was capable of measuring many types of lung function to a good degree of accuracy. In over 10 years of such trials I've never seen an increase in measured lung capacity.

But I HAVE seen improvements in the ability of individual students to move the air that they have and more importantly (IMO), I've seen students become much better at making more sound with less air. In other words, they can become more efficient. How? By diligent practice in all ranges and at all dynamic levels, singing/solfege, some (well-executed) mouthpiece buzzing, etc. I'm 5' 9" and will soon be 50 year old: I don't have a tremendous lung capacity. But I can play longer and bigger phrases than my (much younger) students who have lung capacities of 6 liters and up. I have found that careful practice of legato etudes at pianissimo (with long phrases) to be effective but that's just me: do what works for you, (your teacher will help you find this out).

So definitely try to maximize your breathing but keep working on maximum efficiency.

[Kevin Hendrick]

Would really appreciate feedback.

No problem:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53JpbrxM7O0

[Tuboss2]

Um, so we completely missed the second half of my question.

[Biggs]

Um, so we completely missed the second half of my question.

Not at all, sir. From above:

If you eat 20,000 calories a day, your volume is virtually guaranteed to increase.

in particular, the volume you push out.

[ghmerrill]

I am a firm believer that weight training can increase your lung capacity.

This has traditionally been regarded as not possible -- until recently. Here's an article in the New England Journal of Medicine which reconsiders the "received view" that increase of lung tissue or lung regeneration in developed humans is not possible: http://pulmccm.org/2012/lung-cancer-rev ... us-belief/. But it's still pretty iffy.

However, even if it's true, it really isn't quite to the point here. A lot of confusion comes from talking about lung capacity because in this context "capacity" is an ambiguous term. If "capacity" means volume, then there is little or no evidence (modulo something like the citation above) that volume/capacity can be increased except perhaps through some arcane means such as the use of stem cells.

What pulmonologists talk about isn't an increase in volume or "capacity", but an increase in efficiency -- not an increase in what you have, but a better use of what you have. Exercise can definitely contribute to this, and so can things like the use of an "incentive spirometer" (though this is typically not used therapeutically to increase efficiency past a certain point).

(Aside from some basic research, I have some personal experience with these things, having a child -- now age 38! -- who has gone through four open heart surgeries and the usual pulmonological issues subsequent to those, most recently three years ago. But if you Google away for yourself, you'll see the same story emerging. There's no magic bullet here, but a gain in efficiency -- and performance -- can be achieved through several different approaches to an exercise regimen.)

[ginnboonmiller]

Ignore the jerks. The youtube clip you just posted sounds about a million times better than the last one you posted, so whatever you're doing, keep doing it.

As far as physical fitness is concerned -- yeah, of course, tuba playing is as much an athletic activity as an artistic one. Get/keep in shape and it's all easier. Your capacity is your capacity, and the volume you play at is a matter of practice.

And just know that there's not much point in being the loudest guy in the band. If you're too loud it just takes away from the rest of the band. If you want to be the loudest and most important guy in the group, get a microphone and take the front of the stage (which is what I did, and is cool, but isn't the only thing I do).

[Tuboss2]

Thanks man. Really do appreciate that. Been working real hard to get my tone cleaned up and sounding better. About how much volume am I belting out dynamics wise? I guess a FF-FFF. But I would appreciate more opinions. Thanks for the compliment.

[Tuboss2]

Bump

[NCSUSousa]

Since you're looking for a 'bump', here's my answer to the question:
If you're fat, and exercise leads you to lose that gut, then yes. You will reduce the overall volume consumed within your abdominal cavity by excess fat, which should make room for additional expansion of your lungs (up to your innate vital capacity).
Need a picture of this? Look at Dr Oz's books about weight loss and health. Specifically look up the 'omentum' (sp?). The pictures there are caricatures, but they get the point across and are easier to understand than Anatomy texts.

If you're already slim, then there's not much to be gained in terms of air capacity. Your lungs are what they are.
You can learn to make better use of your innate vital capacity by learning how to control your breath while doing other activities. As you improve the efficiency of your lungs and your control of your breathing, you will be able to use MORE of the air in there. This can be learned in a variety of ways (yoga, martial arts, swimming), not strictly by aerobic activities like running.

Remember that sound volume at the bell of your tuba is not only from air volume into the mouthpiece.
The embouchure plays the biggest role in your ability to control sound at a loud volume level.
Your air capacity (combined with your breath control) mostly impacts your ability to hold notes or phrases longer while remaining on pitch.

[Tuboss2]

Thanks. That got my think. But to avoid that Blat sound, a strong embourchure is required...so, I got a pretty strong embourchure, but I think strengthening it would prove to be even better. So..I'll look into what I can do. Any ideas?