Your body uses two types of metabolism during exercise to provide the fuel needed for your muscles. Learn about aerobic and anaerobic metabolism, how they work, and what it means for you when you exercise.
Overview
Anaerobic metabolism is the creation of energy through the combustion of carbohydrates in the absence of oxygen. This occurs when your lungs cannot put enough oxygen into the bloodstream to keep up with the demands of your muscles for energy. It generally is used only for short bursts of activity, such as when you sprint when running or cycling or when you are lifting heavy weights.
Aerobic metabolism is the way your body creates energy through the combustion of carbohydrates, amino acids, and fats in the presence of oxygen. Combustion means burning, which is why this is called burning sugars, fats, and proteins for energy. Aerobic metabolism is used for the sustained production of energy for exercise and other body functions. Examples of exercises that use aerobic metabolism include walking, running, or cycling with sustained effort.
Your body will often switch between aerobic and anaerobic metabolism during sports and exercise activities that require short bursts of sprints as well as sustained jogging, such as in soccer, tennis, and basketball.
les burn and are fatigued.
Often, this is felt in activities like weight lifting, but you can reach it when running or cycling at a sprint or uphill. You are forced to back off and slow down so your muscles can recover and allow lactic acid to diffuse out of the cells. Lactic acid is further processed by the liver into glucose to use for fuel, completing the cycle.
Slowing Lactic Acid Buildup
You can improve the point at which lactic acid builds up with specific training programs. Athletes often use these to improve their performance. They include a regimen of interval or steady-state training that will bring them to their lactate threshold.
It is also important to have the right diet so your muscles are well-supplied with glycogen for fuel. The lactate threshold is usually reached between 50 percent to 80 percent of an athlete’s VO2 max (maximal oxygen uptake). In elite athletes it can be raised even further, allowing them to put more effort into their activities.
Aerobic Energy
In the aerobic metabolic process, the human body uses glucose to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP) molecules. ATP is what fuels your muscles. Anaerobic metabolism, which is used for vigorous muscle contraction, produces many fewer ATP molecules per glucose molecule, so it is much less efficient.
Aerobic metabolism is part of cellular respiration and involves your cells making energy through glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, and electron transport/oxidative phosphorylation