After reading the lecture notes on aerobic respiration, I found it very useful to see how important breathing is. We know we need oxygen to live of course, but to see the difference in ATP produced in aerobic compared to anaerobic respiration really shows it.
Obviously humans cannot rely on just anaerobic respiration or aerobic respiration. There are times when we need to hold our breath in order to perform the activity, such as swimming. You don't see Michael Phelps with a snorkeler popping out of the pool. Same thing goes for sprinters or weightlifters. By holding their breath they are able to perform better, but as soon as they are done they are taking long, deep breaths in order to make up for the air they were not able to get.
With warm-blooded and cold-blooded animals, I now see why the cold-blooded animals are so much more "lazy" than the warm-blooded ones. The warm-blooded animals definitely have to create enough ATP to keep their bodies at a healthy temperature. It is almost like when we are really cold and then we go for a jog and are then warm. The action warms up our bodies and makes us burn more.
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That is a really good point. I like how you used michael phelps and other athletes to illustrate your point that we need oxygen. I know most amphibians are cold ed so that reminded me of my cousins pet iguana. It used to lay around all day basking in its sun lit cage . haha
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