Training with Asthma

[kingrollo]

Ive dabbled with HRM'S and could never make them work for me - found this article which may explain why.

https://www.wellbridge.com/fit-like-that/measuring-heart-rate-with-asthma

 

[S-Express]

Ive dabbled with HRM'S and could never make them work for me

Not sure what you mean by that. HRMs are supposed to tell you your heart rate. Does yours not do that?

 

[kingrollo]

Not sure what you mean by that. HRMs are supposed to tell you your heart rate. Does yours not do that?

Its a few years since I tried. But I just couldn't get my heart rate in anything other than the top zone, and turn the pedals - but yes I take your point the HRM was working properly. I just wasn't able to do the zoned rides.
I am just theorizing that if your lungs aren't working at full capacity - is your ticker doing more work i.e beating faster making the zones be all over the place ?
I remember recording my max by sprinting up a big hill 5 times with an eyeballs out effort and working out the zones from that.

 

[S-Express]

If you have diagnosed asthma, and you are being treated effectively for it, then there should not be any major issues..

 

[kingrollo]

If you have diagnosed asthma, and you are being treated effectively for it, then there should not be any major issues..

Yes - easier said than done. The medication I am on still only gets me to 350 peak flow. I am having it reviewed but starting to think I might be stuck with a peak flow around that figure.

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Its a few years since I tried. But I just couldn't get my heart rate in anything other than the top zone, and turn the pedals - but yes I take your point the HRM was working properly. I just wasn't able to do the zoned rides.
I am just theorizing that if your lungs aren't working at full capacity - is your ticker doing more work i.e beating faster making the zones be all over the place ?
I remember recording my max by sprinting up a big hill 5 times with an eyeballs out effort and working out the zones from that.

This doesn't make sense.

 

[ColinJ]

Its a few years since I tried. But I just couldn't get my heart rate in anything other than the top zone, and turn the pedals - but yes I take your point the HRM was working properly. I just wasn't able to do the zoned rides.

Are you saying that your heart went crazy as soon as you did any exercise at all? Is it still like that? If so, then either you are ill, you have got your zone calculation completely wrong, or you are incredibly unfit!

What is your heart rate when you are at rest, and what would it be riding slowly along a flat road when there is no wind?

I am just theorizing that if your lungs aren't working at full capacity - is your ticker doing more work i.e beating faster making the zones be all over the place ?

I know from experience that that can be true. I was ill with very compromised blood circulation in my lungs in 2012/2013 and my heart rate was at over 150 bpm when I was just lying around in bed!

 

[Crackle]

I have no real idea whether that article you linked to is even remotely right, I suppose it's possible, you'd need someone with more medical knowledge than the internet or your GP to tell you. What I can say is that, the more you do, the more efficient your cv system gets. You don't need to kill yourself up hills to achieve that, just ride longer and more. You should see your hr drop over time for a given effort or at rest. This then makes harder efforts easier. Whether you will be able to make the same effort as someone with a better peak flow and no asthma is not really relevant any more than me comparing myself to Chris Froome, you'll be able to do what you're able to do and know that you're in better shape than if you weren't doing it.

If you get an HRM, forget about zones, just use it to measure progress, resting HR, average hr, recovery HR.

 

[kingrollo]

Interesting chat with the nurse from Asthma UK.
Basically the latest research is moving away from the term exercise induced asthma - basically asthma is either controlled or not controlled - if its come on with exercise then its not controlled.
She also told there are over 90 inhalers to choose from - some of the are the same stuff branded differently - but many are actually different stuff with very similar names.
She also said there could be nothing wrong with a PF of 350 genetically that could be how your lungs are. The thing to look for is your peak flow improving after medication. She convinced me to get one of those spacer things as this would get more stuff down. - Early days but no improvement in PF yet.

 

[Tazmanian Devil]

Thanks for that and I've had a look on the Asthma Uk website, hoping to see an online chat facility but no such luck so have requested an email reply. After clicking the submit button, was told it could take up to five working days for their reply!

Anyway, since moving to the outskirts of a city from hilly Worcestershire 22 years ago, I have developed mild asthma and I only use a blue inhaler when I'm feeling asthmatic, which is when I'm cycling up hills! I was hoping that having now cycled nearly 3,000 miles over the past year, my breathing when climbing uphills would have improved but no, I get out of breath and have to stop to take a couple of puffs from my blue inhaler before continuing.

Before I go to the surgery, please can anyone advise me so I can discuss this with the nurse or doctor to avoid wasting their time if I'm completely clueless?

Thanks in advance.

 

[mrandmrspoves]

Thanks for that and I've had a look on the Asthma Uk website, hoping to see an online chat facility but no such luck so have requested an email reply. After clicking the submit button, was told it could take up to five working days for their reply!

Anyway, since moving to the outskirts of a city from hilly Worcestershire 22 years ago, I have developed mild asthma and I only use a blue inhaler when I'm feeling asthmatic, which is when I'm cycling up hills! I was hoping that having now cycled nearly 3,000 miles over the past year, my breathing when climbing uphills would have improved but no, I get out of breath and have to stop to take a couple of puffs from my blue inhaler before continuing.

Before I go to the surgery, please can anyone advise me so I can discuss this with the nurse or doctor to avoid wasting their time if I'm completely clueless?

Thanks in advance.

Ok - so exercise brings on your asthma symptoms and you then need to use your blue inhaler. The blue inhaler (Salbutamol) is a bronchodilator so it helps to open up the small airways if they start to close up. This is therefore called a Reliever. Generally speaking, if you need your reliever more than twice a week you would be likely to benefit from a steroid inhaler (a Preventer) the aim is to damp down the inflammatory response so you have less symptoms and need your reliever less often.
Although the Salbutamol is called a Reliever, it can be taken before exercise to prevent asthma symptoms occurring. As Salbutamol starts working quite quickly you would only need to take a puff or two aboit 10 - 15 minutes before you start exercising and it will probably last between 3 - 4 hours once taken.
When using an inhaler, a spacer device will help get more of the medicine into the lungs and always look upwards and tilt your head upwards when using the inhaler - this reduces the angle in your neck which reduces the amount of medicine that hits the back of your throat instead of going down into your lungs.
Apart from using the inhaler/s you can also help yourself by making sure that you warm up gently before exertion and also by concentrating on breathing through your nose rather than your mouth. (Mouth breathing means that inhaler air is not warmed, moistened or filtered before being sucked into your lungs.
The above advice is not a substitute for guidance from your GP or asthma nurse but may help you to identify questions that you may wish to ask.

 

[Tazmanian Devil]

Ok - so exercise brings on your asthma symptoms and you then need to use your blue inhaler. The blue inhaler (Salbutamol) is a bronchodilator so it helps to open up the small airways if they start to close up. This is therefore called a Reliever. Generally speaking, if you need your reliever more than twice a week you would be likely to benefit from a steroid inhaler (a Preventer) the aim is to damp down the inflammatory response so you have less symptoms and need your reliever less often.
Although the Salbutamol is called a Reliever, it can be taken before exercise to prevent asthma symptoms occurring. As Salbutamol starts working quite quickly you would only need to take a puff or two aboit 10 - 15 minutes before you start exercising and it will probably last between 3 - 4 hours once taken.
When using an inhaler, a spacer device will help get more of the medicine into the lungs and always look upwards and tilt your head upwards when using the inhaler - this reduces the angle in your neck which reduces the amount of medicine that hits the back of your throat instead of going down into your lungs.
Apart from using the inhaler/s you can also help yourself by making sure that you warm up gently before exertion and also by concentrating on breathing through your nose rather than your mouth. (Mouth breathing means that inhaler air is not warmed, moistened or filtered before being sucked into your lungs.
The above advice is not a substitute for guidance from your GP or asthma nurse but may help you to identify questions that you may wish to ask.

Thank you for your above message and it was very useful to me. Today I inhaled my blue inhaler 10 mins before I started and all went well with our cycle ride over long hills but none as steep as Edge Hill. As it was sunny but cold wind today, I wore my neck bandana to cover up my nose and mouth to help prevent the cold air entering my lungs, which definitely helped but unfortunately I'm unable to breath through my nose as I have runny nose/blockage so mostly breathe through my mouth when cycling.

For every day living including walking our dog, I rarely use my blue inhaler (think you need to have to use the blue inhaler more than 3 times daily for you to need the brown inhaler?) so I'm reluctant to use the brown inhaler, which has steroids as over a long period, the steroids could be more harmful as that was the case with my cousin who now has to eat gluten free foods and has had to use a decongestant for the first time during the summer when pollen was high.

Anyway, I will be keeping records, see how things go before I make an appointment to see the nurse/doctor for a review on my asthma.

 

[mrandmrspoves]

Glad you found my post helpful.
Asthma guidelines are to prescribe a Preventer inhaler if the patient uses their reliever 3 x weekly or more. (Not daily)
In terms of side effects from inhaled steroids - the risk of side effects is much lower than the risks of uncontrolled asthma - asthma still kills appx. 1300 people in the UK every year.
Long term side effects of inhaled steroids are much lower than the side effects of oral steroids because the % of medication used is so much lower and primarily delivered to the lungs only rather than systemically through the whole body.
The fact that you are mouth breathing is significant - and breathing through a bandana or similar may well help - especially when the weather gets colder because cold air can be a significant asthma trigger. More so, the blocked/runny nose may well indicate a pollen or other allergen sensitivity. With this in mind it may be worth trying a non sedating anti-histamine such as Loratidine or Cetirizine - these are readily available and can be bought from many shops or pharmacies. If after a few days of using them your congestion/runny nose is still as bad it would be worth trying a steroidal nasal spray such as Flixonase or Beconase. If you hve tried a nasal decongestant such as Vicks don't use it for more than a few days because they can cause rebound symptoms.
As previous, my suggestions above are merely that and it is worth checking what is best for you with your GP, Asthma Nurse or pharmacist.

 

[Julia9054]

Fast heart rate can be a side effect of some asthma medications. I have moderate, well controlled asthma and have been on inhaled steroids for over 40 years. My inhaler also contains a long acting bronchodilator (also known as add on therapy). I use my blue salbutamol inhaler about once a month - they generally go out of date before I finish them. My peak flow is average/slightly above average for my age, size and gender. However my resting heart rate is around 75 - 80bpm despite being fit. My gp tells me that it is a trade off for keeping my lungs working efficiently and as it is not affecting my activity in any way I have chucked the hrm out and learned to stop worrying about it.

 

[ColinJ]

Fast heart rate can be a side effect of some asthma medications. I have moderate, well controlled asthma and have been on inhaled steroids for over 40 years. My inhaler also contains a long acting bronchodilator (also known as add on therapy). I use my blue salbutamol inhaler about once a month - they generally go out of date before I finish them. My peak flow is average/slightly above average for my age, size and gender. However my resting heart rate is around 75 - 80bpm despite being fit. My gp tells me that it is a trade off for keeping my lungs working efficiently and as it is not affecting my activity in any way I have chucked the hrm out and learned to stop worrying about it.

Seeing the way you were riding off into the distance ahead of me on the Scarborough ride last weekend, I'd say that it is definitely working well for you!