stuntmatt

Hi Folks,
Hey, anyone out there working through cycling-induced asthma? I've had asthma all my life and while cycling has helped me overcome much of it, racing has become a bit of a problem. I run out of lungs long before I run out of legs. Can anybody relate? If you can, have you found any treatments or techniques that have improved your performance, improving lung function? Thanks.

Carbonfiberboy 

Get an appointment with a pulmonary specialist. The doc will fit you out with meds and you'll be fine, just like you don't even have it. Insist on maintenance meds, not just a rescue inhaler, though you'll want one of those too, just in case. A recent breathing thread is here:
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...-through-mouth

stuntmatt

Thanks. That's what I'm currently doing. Handful of pills. Handful of inhalers. Both have helped control my asthma in normal life. Still major challenges in max effort training and racing. I'll check out the other thread.

Carbonfiberboy 

Pills? I'm not aware of a modern asthma treatment that uses pills. Handful of inhalers? Which ones?

TrainingProgram

Thats a big advice for asthama patients who want to keep their body perfect or who wants to participate in games.

charbucks

I feel for you! I haven't had asthma "all my life" - I developed it in my early 20s, and went through a couple of years of pain before getting set up with some maintenance meds that work for me. I'm by no means a competitive athlete, but I do enjoy participating in triathlons and running races (haven't quite gotten up the nerve to do bike races yet though!). I'm a pretty average middle-of-the-pack enthusiast.

Like you, I usually "run out of lungs" far before I run out of legs. Honestly though, I don't know if that's different from most people. Do you get actual attacks while racing, or do you just get that burning sensation where you just can't push it any more? I'm in the former camp, and I am definitely capable of decreasing my times by training. I would say that if you're not actually getting attacks during races then you're probably not that different from non-asthmatics... some people are limited by muscles, some by cardio.

TrainingProgram: I'm not sure what you mean by "keeping your body perfect", but asthma maintenance drugs are not illegal for games. My body is much more "perfect" when I inhale steroids and beta agonists every day than if I don't, so as much as I don't like being dependant on drugs, my quality of life is exponentially better when I'm taking them.

ericm979

Singulair is one.

It seems to help my breathing in normal daily activities but doesn't help my EIA in races or training rides. I'm still looking for something that will fix that. Albuterol and Symbicort both cut it down somewhat but it's still a problem when I go really hard. I tend to favor longer races or races with longer climbs as a result. Also hot dry weather.

No current asthma med that I'm aware of is banned according to current WADA regs. For some of them there is a limit that is much higher than the typical doseage for asthma.

Carbonfiberboy 

Have you tried Salmeterol and Fluticasone combined (Advair)? My wife uses that. I use Fluticasone for my daily and add Salmeterol the day of a hard ride. With that combi I can stay over LT for quite a while.

stuntmatt

I'm on Singulair, Advair, Albuterol and an antihistamine. My problem is thick sticky mucus while racing — have to constantly clear it. Not pleasant.

Now... I tried something that actually worked in today's race. In addition to taking two puffs of Albuterol, I "cheeked" Halls cough drops. Might sound weird, but it really helped. I'm planning on doing it again during tomorrow's race.

RiPHRaPH

The Hall's has menthol in it that clears and opens everything up. Like using a menthol rub on your chest or under your nostrils. An antihistamine is probably more drying than you want.
I find that the warm up is the key to the entire day. It takes around 15 minutes of just standing around outside or light,easy warm up before you are amped up. Hydration is even more important for asthmatics. Singular is very helpful.
Most asthmatics find that their symptoms are triggered by allergy. Mornings after a rain or spring and fall weather brings out the worst type of allergies for asthmatics.
There are some asthmatics in the NHL, NFL so I know that these limitations stated here can be overcome.