![easily winded beginning mtb ride easily winded beginning mtb ride](https://keyassets.timeincuk.net/inspirewp/live/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2021/01/Z6R3973-scaled.jpg)
![easily winded beginning mtb ride easily winded beginning mtb ride](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56bf74dc86db43b5489facc9/1591722472364-0DPNZNY9ZFX88EJADRV9/AJK05464.jpeg)
The first thing I asked Heather Ruff, assistant director of personal training with Charter Fitness, was whether all my gym time has been for naught. How can you tell the difference? Here are a few times gasping for air is totally normal-and when you might want to talk to someone about it. (Burn calories and build muscle-all while boosting your mood-with our 21-Day Walk a Little, Lose a Lot Challenge!) Andersen, MD, a cardiologist at New York–Presbyterian Hospital and a medical advisor to the Women's Heart Alliance. So why am I still out of breath on those stairs? And should I be worried?Īt the most basic level, breathing heavily is a sign your body needs more oxygen, whether that's because you're asking your muscles to power you up the stairs or because of something more medically worrisome, like artery blockages to the heart or lungs, says Holly S. It's basically how runners work up to a marathon or how weight lifters pile on more plates. It's confusing as a pretty regular exerciser, I know such repetitive practice-can we call it training?!-is typically supposed to result in progress. Even when I'm not carrying bulging bags of groceries, I'm huffing and puffing by the time I reach my doormat. For 2 years, I've been trudging up and down the stairs to my third-floor New York City apartment.