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My city's (Sofia) air quality is utter dogshit, enough to outweigh any benefits of outdoor cardio.
>Studies found that, most of the time, people who ran and rode vigorously had larger brain volumes and lower risks for dementia than their less active peers. But if people exercised in areas with even moderate levels of air pollution, the expected brain improvements from exercise almost disappeared.
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/how-to/how-exercising-during-even-moderate-air-pollution-levels-can-harm-your-brain/articleshow/89885220.cms
https://n.neurology.org/content/98/4/e416
https://journals.lww.com/acsm-msse/Citation/2022/07000/Association_of_Physical_Activity_with_Incidence_of.11.aspx
Like that article suggests, I've been considering using exercise masks instead, but it's hard to figure out what the best combination of cost/effectiveness/comfort/replaceability would be.
The Respro brand looks pretty okay - they have several mask designs for varying levels of intensity, and all their filters are interchangeable. However, they recommend changing the filters around every month (compared to 6-8 months or even a year, which I've seen other brands claim for their products). So I'm not sure how quickly the cost of replacing filters every month might add up when compared to other brands. Or perhaps even if a mask lasts much longer, it might be too heavy-duty to use for cardio.
Then again, there's always counterfeits and dubious claims regarding masks (or most other products online), especially after demand for them exploded during the pandemic - so I'm not really sure how to navigate the topic. If anyone here has experience with this industry, I'd appreciate any guidelines.
And it's probably best invest in an indoor filter as well, but that's a whole different topic (with its' own perpetual maintenance costs).
>Studies found that, most of the time, people who ran and rode vigorously had larger brain volumes and lower risks for dementia than their less active peers. But if people exercised in areas with even moderate levels of air pollution, the expected brain improvements from exercise almost disappeared.
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/how-to/how-exercising-during-even-moderate-air-pollution-levels-can-harm-your-brain/articleshow/89885220.cms
https://n.neurology.org/content/98/4/e416
https://journals.lww.com/acsm-msse/Citation/2022/07000/Association_of_Physical_Activity_with_Incidence_of.11.aspx
Like that article suggests, I've been considering using exercise masks instead, but it's hard to figure out what the best combination of cost/effectiveness/comfort/replaceability would be.
The Respro brand looks pretty okay - they have several mask designs for varying levels of intensity, and all their filters are interchangeable. However, they recommend changing the filters around every month (compared to 6-8 months or even a year, which I've seen other brands claim for their products). So I'm not sure how quickly the cost of replacing filters every month might add up when compared to other brands. Or perhaps even if a mask lasts much longer, it might be too heavy-duty to use for cardio.
Then again, there's always counterfeits and dubious claims regarding masks (or most other products online), especially after demand for them exploded during the pandemic - so I'm not really sure how to navigate the topic. If anyone here has experience with this industry, I'd appreciate any guidelines.
And it's probably best invest in an indoor filter as well, but that's a whole different topic (with its' own perpetual maintenance costs).
