Do you ride with Bronchitis?

Bestest Handsander said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia). Hasn't affected my riding because I usually
don't go in the snow. Now I'm coming down with it for the
first time in the spring. I really don't want to take time
off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if I
continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the illness
out over months when it would have cleared up much sooner
with rest? I know you see pros riding with it all the
time, but is it a good idea of an amateur?

It doesn't seem to affect me during the ride, but
afterwards it's all I can do to keep the lungs in my chest
I'm coughing so hard.

Thanks

I've been riding the past 3 weeks with a chest cold, guess
it could be Bronchitis, doing mostly Mountain Biking, also a
few 70km fire road rides, and certainly it hasn't helped my
cold. I also almost cough my lungs up by the end of the
ride, or when on single-track and doing some quick spirts to
get up steep hills, have to stop to cough for a few minutes.

It can't be helping the situation, but ride I must!

Quoted message said:

I also almost cough my lungs up by the end of the ride, or
when on single-track and doing some quick spirts to get up
steep hills, have to stop to cough for a few minutes.

healthy stuff, this cycling ;-)

Cheers, helen s

--This is an invalid email address to avoid spam-- to get
correct one remove fame & fortune
h*$el*$$e*nd**$o$ts**i*$*$m*m$o*n*s@$*a$o*l.c**$om$

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is switched off--

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----

In article <[email hidden]>, Bestest

Handsander said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia). Hasn't affected my riding because I usually
don't go in the snow. Now I'm coming down with it for the
first time in the spring. I really don't want to take time
off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if I
continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the illness
out over months when it would have cleared up much sooner
with rest? I know you see pros riding with it all the time,
but is it a good idea of an amateur?

It doesn't seem to affect me during the ride, but
afterwards it's all I can do to keep the lungs in my chest
I'm coughing so hard.

_ It's a dumb idea. You're digging yourself a hole that's
going to be hard to get out of. One of the side effects of
heavy exercise is a reduction in the immune system. Anybody
can train themselves into a wreck, the difference between
winners and losers is the ablity and self discipline to know
when to rest. You actually might be quite suprised at how
fast you come back after a real rest. It's very common to
have your best results after an illness break, if you're
habitually overtraining.

_ The other thing to keep in mind that you are risking long
term damage to your lungs. A severe lung infection can cause
damage to your lung capacity that might take years to
recover from.

_ Booker C. Bense

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In article <[email hidden]>, Bestest

Handsander said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia). Hasn't affected my riding because I usually
don't go in the snow. Now I'm coming down with it for the
first time in the spring. I really don't want to take time
off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if I
continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the illness
out over months when it would have cleared up much sooner
with rest? I know you see pros riding with it all the time,
but is it a good idea of an amateur?

It doesn't seem to affect me during the ride, but
afterwards it's all I can do to keep the lungs in my chest
I'm coughing so hard.

_ It's a dumb idea. You're digging yourself a hole that's
going to be hard to get out of. One of the side effects of
heavy exercise is a reduction in the immune system. Anybody
can train themselves into a wreck, the difference between
winners and losers is the ablity and self discipline to know
when to rest. You actually might be quite suprised at how
fast you come back after a real rest. It's very common to
have your best results after an illness break, if you're
habitually overtraining.

_ The other thing to keep in mind that you are risking long
term damage to your lungs. A severe lung infection can cause
damage to your lung capacity that might take years to
recover from.

_ Booker C. Bense

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bbense+rec.bicycles.misc.May.13.0 said:

_ It's a dumb idea. You're digging yourself a hole that's
going to be hard to get out of. One of the side effects of
heavy exercise is a reduction in the immune system.
Anybody can train themselves into a wreck, the difference
between winners and losers is the ablity and self
discipline to know when to rest. You actually might be
quite suprised at how fast you come back after a real
rest. It's very common to have your best results after an
illness break, if you're habitually overtraining.

You are probably right. But I still tend to do like the
original poster. I catch a cold once a year, usually around
february, and keep coughing till spring. It is usually
something quite irritative that does not "feel" like a
serious illness, but who knows ? I assume that if I stopped
cycling for a full month it could perhaps go away faster,
but it would be a real pain. I have also noticed that during
the effort, taking deep breaths even in cold weather, I do
not cough. My doctor never told me to stop cycling... but
did I tell him I was, in the first place ?

Jacques

On Wed, 12 May 2004 17:12:54 -0600, "Bestest Handsander" <[email hidden]>

wrote in message : said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia). Hasn't affected my riding because I usually
don't go in the snow. Now I'm coming down with it for the
first time in the spring. I really don't want to take time
off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if I
continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the illness
out over months when it would have cleared up much sooner
with rest?

If I am not well enough to ride the bike, I am not well
enough to go to work - and vice versa. During the winter and
the rape pollen season I am prone to exercise induced
asthma, so I take Salbutamol before I ride. In winter I have
been known to suffer chest infections and virus-induced
asthma so I generally take Beclamethosone. Since doing this
I find that I have not had a bout of bronchitis (which
previously I used to get on a fairly regular basis: I was
discharged from the Army reserves for chronic bronchitis).

When I have a chest infection (or just the cruds) I find
that riding clears my chest rather than making it worse,
provided I take Salbutamol.

I went to the asthma clinic once feeling a bit low because I
had a chest cold. The nurse had me blow in the peak flow
meter: 750 l/min (the scale only goes to 800). Apparently of
her 1,500-odd patients only a dozen or so can get to that
reading, and all the rest are athletes. Cycling is
marvellous for the lungs.

Does your medical practice have a chest / asthma clinic?

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
chapmancentral.co.ukchapmancentral.co.ukOpen ↗

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

On Wed, 12 May 2004 17:12:54 -0600, "Bestest Handsander" <[email hidden]>

wrote in message : said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia). Hasn't affected my riding because I usually
don't go in the snow. Now I'm coming down with it for the
first time in the spring. I really don't want to take time
off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if I
continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the illness
out over months when it would have cleared up much sooner
with rest?

If I am not well enough to ride the bike, I am not well
enough to go to work - and vice versa. During the winter and
the rape pollen season I am prone to exercise induced
asthma, so I take Salbutamol before I ride. In winter I have
been known to suffer chest infections and virus-induced
asthma so I generally take Beclamethosone. Since doing this
I find that I have not had a bout of bronchitis (which
previously I used to get on a fairly regular basis: I was
discharged from the Army reserves for chronic bronchitis).

When I have a chest infection (or just the cruds) I find
that riding clears my chest rather than making it worse,
provided I take Salbutamol.

I went to the asthma clinic once feeling a bit low because I
had a chest cold. The nurse had me blow in the peak flow
meter: 750 l/min (the scale only goes to 800). Apparently of
her 1,500-odd patients only a dozen or so can get to that
reading, and all the rest are athletes. Cycling is
marvellous for the lungs.

Does your medical practice have a chest / asthma clinic?

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
chapmancentral.co.ukchapmancentral.co.ukOpen ↗

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

On Wed, 12 May 2004 17:12:54 -0600, "Bestest Handsander" <[email hidden]>

wrote in message : said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia). Hasn't affected my riding because I usually
don't go in the snow. Now I'm coming down with it for the
first time in the spring. I really don't want to take time
off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if I
continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the illness
out over months when it would have cleared up much sooner
with rest?

If I am not well enough to ride the bike, I am not well
enough to go to work - and vice versa. During the winter and
the rape pollen season I am prone to exercise induced
asthma, so I take Salbutamol before I ride. In winter I have
been known to suffer chest infections and virus-induced
asthma so I generally take Beclamethosone. Since doing this
I find that I have not had a bout of bronchitis (which
previously I used to get on a fairly regular basis: I was
discharged from the Army reserves for chronic bronchitis).

When I have a chest infection (or just the cruds) I find
that riding clears my chest rather than making it worse,
provided I take Salbutamol.

I went to the asthma clinic once feeling a bit low because I
had a chest cold. The nurse had me blow in the peak flow
meter: 750 l/min (the scale only goes to 800). Apparently of
her 1,500-odd patients only a dozen or so can get to that
reading, and all the rest are athletes. Cycling is
marvellous for the lungs.

Does your medical practice have a chest / asthma clinic?

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
chapmancentral.co.ukchapmancentral.co.ukOpen ↗

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

No.

If it's below the neck, get off and rest.

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----

In article <[email hidden]>,
Jacques Moser

Quoted message said:

On Thu, 13 May 2004 15:40:46 +0000,

bbense+rec.bicycles.misc.May.13.0 said:

_ It's a dumb idea. You're digging yourself a hole that's
going to be hard to get out of. One of the side effects
of heavy exercise is a reduction in the immune system.
Anybody can train themselves into a wreck, the difference
between winners and losers is the ablity and self
discipline to know when to rest. You actually might be
quite suprised at how fast you come back after a real
rest. It's very common to have your best results after an
illness break, if you're habitually overtraining.

You are probably right. But I still tend to do like the
original poster. I catch a cold once a year, usually around
february, and keep coughing till spring. It is usually
something quite irritative that does not "feel" like a
serious illness, but who knows ?

_ The one thing I've learned that works for me is to take a
day off of everything, ( work, training, life ) and just
rest when I start to feel a cold coming on.

Quoted message said:

I assume that if I stopped cycling for a full month it
could perhaps go away faster, but it would be a real pain.

_ If you don't dig the hole in the first place it takes a
lot less time to get out of it. Chronic colds and cough are
classic signs of overtraining. It shouldn't take a month to
shake a cold, a week or two weeks at most. You don't lose
any fitness in a week.

Quoted message said:

I have also noticed that during the effort, taking deep
breaths even in cold weather, I do not cough. My doctor
never told me to stop cycling... but did I tell him I was,
in the first place ?

_ The classic advice is to stop training if it's below your
head. If you aren't healthy to start with, I don't know how
much real good training does you.

_ Booker C. Bense

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In article <[email hidden]>,
Jacques Moser

Quoted message said:

On Thu, 13 May 2004 15:40:46 +0000,

bbense+rec.bicycles.misc.May.13.0 said:

_ It's a dumb idea. You're digging yourself a hole that's
going to be hard to get out of. One of the side effects
of heavy exercise is a reduction in the immune system.
Anybody can train themselves into a wreck, the difference
between winners and losers is the ablity and self
discipline to know when to rest. You actually might be
quite suprised at how fast you come back after a real
rest. It's very common to have your best results after an
illness break, if you're habitually overtraining.

You are probably right. But I still tend to do like the
original poster. I catch a cold once a year, usually around
february, and keep coughing till spring. It is usually
something quite irritative that does not "feel" like a
serious illness, but who knows ?

_ The one thing I've learned that works for me is to take a
day off of everything, ( work, training, life ) and just
rest when I start to feel a cold coming on.

Quoted message said:

I assume that if I stopped cycling for a full month it
could perhaps go away faster, but it would be a real pain.

_ If you don't dig the hole in the first place it takes a
lot less time to get out of it. Chronic colds and cough are
classic signs of overtraining. It shouldn't take a month to
shake a cold, a week or two weeks at most. You don't lose
any fitness in a week.

Quoted message said:

I have also noticed that during the effort, taking deep
breaths even in cold weather, I do not cough. My doctor
never told me to stop cycling... but did I tell him I was,
in the first place ?

_ The classic advice is to stop training if it's below your
head. If you aren't healthy to start with, I don't know how
much real good training does you.

_ Booker C. Bense

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i hate to ask the obvious question but i will anyway.

why ask this bunch of bikeheads?

ever consider going to a DOCTOR??

CHEERS

DON "Bestest Handsander" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia).

Hasn't

Quoted message said:

affected my riding because I usually don't go in the snow.
Now I'm coming down with it for the first time in the
spring. I really don't want to

take

Quoted message said:

time off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if
I continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the illness
out over months when it would have cleared up much sooner
with rest? I know you see pros riding with it all the
time, but is it a good idea of an amateur?

It doesn't seem to affect me during the ride, but
afterwards it's all I

can

Quoted message said:

do to keep the lungs in my chest I'm coughing so hard.

Thanks

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

i hate to ask the obvious question but i will anyway.

why ask this bunch of bikeheads?

Because the question wasn't "Should I ride with
bronchitis?", but rather was "Do you ride with bronchitis?"
A doctor could maybe answer the former, but certianly not
the latter question.

Quoted message said:

ever consider going to a DOCTOR??

CHEERS

DON

....

--
Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in
the newsgroups if possible).

"Bestest Handsander" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia). Hasn't affected my riding because I usually
don't go in the snow. Now I'm coming down with it for the
first time in the spring. I really don't want to take time
off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if I
continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the illness
out over months when it would have cleared up much sooner
with rest? I know you see pros riding with it all the
time, but is it a good idea of an amateur?

It doesn't seem to affect me during the ride, but
afterwards it's all I can do to keep the lungs in my chest
I'm coughing so hard.

Personally I would keep riding through bronchitis (but
probably not pneumonia). I find when I have a bad chest cold
that cycling seems to temporarily soothe my symptoms.
However this is going at a nice, easy pace. If I push it,
I'm guaranteed to make things worse.

I think you've answered your own question though when you
say how it affects you after the ride.. if it makes things
worse, sounds like a good idea to take it easy and try to
rest and clear things up as soon as possible.

Quoted message said:

I went to the asthma clinic once feeling a bit low because
I had a chest cold. The nurse had me blow in the peak flow
meter: 750 l/min (the scale only goes to 800). Apparently
of her 1,500-odd patients only a dozen or so can get to
that reading, and all the rest are athletes. Cycling is
marvellous for the lungs.

The problem with exercise-induced Asthma, for the athletic
sort of person, is that you really need to get a pre-
exercise and post-exercise reading to be terribly relevant
(because, as you found out, your static reading was nearly
off the charts).

It's a screwy thing, to be sure. I've ridden with people
(including one doctor) who are positive that I suffer from
exercise-induced ashtma, and I don't have trouble believing
this; my lungs sound like a steam engine going up hill. Yet
I feel a ton better after a hard ride than before. I feel
like I can actually get air into my lungs, my head clears,
and, even while I'm riding, my allergies seem a whole lot
less severe than at other times.

I think some of us were simply designed by God to ride a
bike. Everything else is secondary.

--Mike Jacoubowsky Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com IMBA, BikesBelong, NBDA member

"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email hidden]> wrote
in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Wed, 12 May 2004 17:12:54 -0600, "Bestest Handsander"
<[email hidden]> wrote in message
<[email hidden]>:

Quoted message said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia).

Hasn't

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

affected my riding because I usually don't go in the
snow. Now I'm

coming

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

down with it for the first time in the spring. I really
don't want to

take

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

time off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if
I continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the
illness out over months when it

would

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

have cleared up much sooner with rest?

If I am not well enough to ride the bike, I am not well
enough to go to work - and vice versa. During the winter
and the rape pollen season I am prone to exercise induced
asthma, so I take Salbutamol before I ride. In winter I
have been known to suffer chest infections and virus-
induced asthma so I generally take Beclamethosone. Since
doing this I find that I have not had a bout of bronchitis
(which previously I used to get on a fairly regular basis:
I was discharged from the Army reserves for chronic
bronchitis).

When I have a chest infection (or just the cruds) I find
that riding clears my chest rather than making it worse,
provided I take Salbutamol.

I went to the asthma clinic once feeling a bit low because
I had a chest cold. The nurse had me blow in the peak flow
meter: 750 l/min (the scale only goes to 800). Apparently
of her 1,500-odd patients only a dozen or so can get to
that reading, and all the rest are athletes. Cycling is
marvellous for the lungs.

Does your medical practice have a chest / asthma clinic?

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle
after posting. chapmancentral.co.ukchapmancentral.co.ukOpen ↗

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at
Washington University

Quoted message said:

Every winter I get Bronchitis (sometimes developing into
pneumonia).

Hasn't

Quoted message said:

affected my riding because I usually don't go in the snow.
Now I'm coming down with it for the first time in the
spring. I really don't want to

take

Quoted message said:

time off the bike... that would put me way behind. But if
I continue to ride with it, am I going to drag the illness
out over months when it would have cleared up much sooner
with rest? I know you see pros riding with it all the
time, but is it a good idea of an amateur?

The real question here is whether it's a good idea to ride
when you're sick, and I think this probably varies greatly
from person to person.

For myself, I can be as sick as a dog and I'm still going to
find a way to get out there on my bike. My theory (which may
eventually kill me) is that giving in to a cold is like
telling it that it has my permission to party inside my
body. I hate that idea. So I ride myself into the ground,
believing that somehow that's going to beat those beasties
into submission and they're going to figure there's a more
hospitable place to party!

To the extent that the body responds to positive thinking
etc., there may be something to this. Or maybe I'm just one
of those lucky people who don't get sick very often, and,
when they do, it tends to be very mild. Thus far, I have no
obvious ill affects from riding when I shouldn't (which
includes going out in cold rain when feeling feverish &
achy)... meaning that I have yet to feel that riding myself
into the ground has induced a state of exhuastion such that
I remained sick longer than I should have.

And yes, I admit this could all simply be rationalization,
and I'm just darned lucky. Or maybe I'm just trying to
prolong the feeling of being young & stupid & having no
future far longer than it's safe to do so?

--Mike Jacoubowsky Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com IMBA, BikesBelong, NBDA member

On Fri, 14 May 2004 23:23:12 GMT, "Mike Jacoubowsky/Chain Reaction

Bicycles said:

The real question here is whether it's a good idea to ride
when you're sick, and I think this probably varies greatly
from person to person.

For myself, I can be as sick as a dog and I'm still going
to find a way to get out there on my bike. My theory (which
may eventually kill me) is that giving in to a cold is like
telling it that it has my permission to party inside my
body. I hate that idea. So I ride myself into the ground,
believing that somehow that's going to beat those beasties
into submission and they're going to figure there's a more
hospitable place to party!

I do the same on the possibly mistaken theory that virii and
bacteria find exercise induced conditions hostile. The
biggest factor, IMO, is heat. So if I'm ill but don't have a
fever, I'll wear an extra layer of clothes and really do
some serious sweating.

If you have a fever, it's probably not a good idea to do a
lot of exercising. YMMV.

Like your take on it. Tiny livestock, beware! ;->

-B

In article <[email hidden]>,

Badger_South said:

If you have a fever, it's probably not a good idea to do a
lot of exercising. YMMV.

I'm no physiologist by a long shot, but I wouldn't be
surprised if oxygen was key, especially in the context of
riding while suffering respiratory ailments. If your body
can't distribute the 02 it takes in to where it needs to go
(including of course, the brain) and do what it should with
it, maybe it's best to hang it up for awhile. But if it can
- go for it. Why not?

I get the occasional touch of bronchitis, and a half-hour of
moderate riding clears it. After that, I'm good to go. I've
found avoiding eating dairy products (easier said than done)
and /dehydrating/ a little during the first hour or so of
riding, helps a lot. But then, I live in a climate where one
can almost hydrate by osmosis (well, by breathing, anyway.)

It's also important to get rid of one's horks /as soon as/
the opportunies present themselves. I prefer to do it the
gracious way (Kleenex), rather than leaving a trail of
'smoked oysters' behind me. I can't even blow my nose when
people are looking. But that stuff has to be jettisoned one
way or another. That's how your ride and your breathing gets
progressively better. Sorry for the graphic-ness, but
bronchitis ain't pretty.

I agree with you about fevers. During fevers the body is so
preoccupied with self-repair, it's probably best to just let
it take care of business. Just like it's best not to
interrupt your your plumber with offers of tea & cakes until
the job's done. And his hands are washed. Prob'ly wouldn't
even wanna move, let alone ride, during a fever anyway.

But riding well with mere bronchitis is mostly just a
balancing act of timed hydration and consuming (or not
consuming) stuff. It's probably easier than working around
asthma. As I say this, I'm hoping we're talking about plain,
ol' bronchitis, and not pleurisy, or worse.

Quitting smoking also helps a great deal. !

cheers, Tom

--
-- Powered by FreeBSD Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

On Fri, 14 May 2004 19:54:28 -0400, Badger_South <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I do the same on the possibly mistaken theory that virii
and bacteria find exercise induced conditions hostile. The
biggest factor, IMO, is heat. So if I'm ill but don't have
a fever, I'll wear an extra layer of clothes and really do
some serious sweating.

From the posts, I assuming that everyone is discussing hard
riding. If the doctor lets you walk, you can ride. Big
difference, though, if you plan to ride hard. Serious
bronchitis or pneumonia will take care of itself - you try
to ride hard, someone will be picking you up off the
pavement. In the real cases, you simply don't have the air
throughput to keep you moving fast. Perspective changes and
visual distortion is a good sign to slow down or stop...

Real pneumonia is when you wake up and your dog is staring
at you in the middle of the night, wondering why you're
making all that noise.

Curtis L. Russell Odenton, MD (USA) Just someone on
two wheels...