Which of the following physiological changes does NOT occur when a client improves aerobic capacity?

Improved aerobic capacity genuinely increases the muscles' ability to extract oxygen from blood, reflected by a widened arteriovenous oxygen difference, making this a true and expected adaptation.

Total lung capacity is primarily determined by structural factors such as chest wall dimensions and lung tissue elasticity, and does not meaningfully increase as a function of accumulated high-intensity exercise time. Aerobic training improves ventilatory efficiency by increasing tidal volume and respiratory rate during exertion, but the static structural measure of total lung volume remains largely unchanged regardless of training volume.

Aerobic training increases red blood cell count and hemoglobin concentration, which directly raises the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood, making this a confirmed training adaptation.

Aerobic training improves the ability to increase both rate and depth of breathing during exercise, allowing greater pulmonary ventilation, which is a true adaptation and not the exception.