Just found out I'm anemic. Not good.

[Bailsibub]

So my work had a 'health day' and a bunch of nurses came in to check everyone. Got my bloodwork back and it turns out I'm anemic, 12.7g/dl.

In terms of performance, my FTP is still alright even though my training load has gone down, it's around 320 on 85 CTL.

I've been a little lightheaded at times though. And was close to passing out last week after I kneeled down and rose too fast. I had a spell there during the early summer where my power went down. But I let the training load go down, and power went up. FTP now isn't too far off the season high (Maybe the lowered training load let my hemoglobin catch up?).

I made an appointment with the doc for Monday. He's a gen. prac, but he helped me with an allergy problem that had slowed me down for years and years. I don't know how much experience he has with anemia in athletes though. So should I try to find a doc that specializes in athletes with this condition? (a pretty tall order here in Korea...but doable through my team) Or is this something a gen. prac can handle?

Anyone had something similar? And what did you do?

By the way, my diet is decent. No junk. I did stop taking a multi everyday (been taking it every other day) as per the recommendation of a nutritionist, who stated with the extra food cyclists eat, that's a better strategy. Red meat every few days. Eggs almost every day.

Any input?

 

[bubsy]

What is 12.7 your HB l'd assume? What was your HCT?
And if your FTP is 320w then dude you aint't truely anemic trust me.
Anyway go to your GP and he/she will order full iron studys + maybee FBE, the main one they will check is iron ferritin, mine was low once and hct was ~38% and an iron supp solved that.
Being an enduro junkie it is more common than most people think to have low Hb Hct or low iron levels it's just that most people don't got to their doc often and get blood test's done, when was your last blood test before this one?

Best to get checked out by your regular doc and be certain all your organs are there and switched on

 

[Bailsibub]

We were all surprised the way my power bounced back this season the way it did after cutting back on training load (and intensity), and now even moreso to find out I could have been doing all of that while having a problem.

12.7 was the hemoglobin number. Didn't get a hematocrit number (the testing was through work...not something I specifically requested.) I'm guessing the GP will get more thorough testing done when I show him.

I'm really hoping that something simple like an iron supp will help, but I'm not going to touch any of that stuff without the doc.

I'm pretty concerned about passing out, falling, etc. because I've had some recent bouts where I felt lightheaded.

Oh, it's been a long time since I had blood testing done. Years and years. Live and learn. Guess I'll be heading to the doc now regularly to get them to test the octane.

How long did it take for your HCT and ferritin levels to go back up?

What is 12.7 your HB l'd assume? What was your HCT?
And if your FTP is 320w then dude you aint't truely anemic trust me.
Anyway go to your GP and he/she will order full iron studys + maybee FBE, the main one they will check is iron ferritin, mine was low once and hct was ~38% and an iron supp solved that.
Being an enduro junkie it is more common than most people think to have low Hb Hct or low iron levels it's just that most people don't got to their doc often and get blood test's done, when was your last blood test before this one?

Best to get checked out by your regular doc and be certain all your organs are there and switched on

 

[jhuskey]

My wife has blood issues, anemia, low white count. The white count being the more dangerous issue. She was given large dosage of iron and her anemia improved but the pills made her nauseous and it took about a month to see results.
Of course everyone is different and she doesn't work out as I wish she would and I realize the anemia is difficult to deal with when it comes to motivation.
Too much time and stress at work is another issue with her but we are trying to make some changes.

 

[daveryanwyoming]

Go see the doc and get a workup, but the lightheadedness doesn't in and of itself hit me as unusual. You didn't mention your blood pressure, but a lot of athlete's run low resting blood pressures which lead to near blackouts when standing quickly from rest. In season my resting BP is pretty low, last time it was measured in a docs office it was 105/68 sitting down. I've learned to pause a moment when I first sit up from bed before I stand up or I'd better hang onto something while my BP adjusts. My doctor isn't concerned and my blood work is normal, I just have a low resting blood pressure and it's not unusual among endurance athletes.

Google 'postural hypotension athletes' or something along those lines and you'll get lots of hits about dizzy spells on standing in very healthy folks. Not saying that's your issue and definitely get a checkup and some blood work but I wouldn't get too hung up on that symptom alone.

Good luck,
-Dave

 

[bubsy]

How long did it take for your HCT and ferritin levels to go back up?

lt was 6wks between tests so not too shure, l also had really low white blood cell count [still do] and this is what they were more interseted in.
Ferritin went up to mid 60's over 12wks and hct which was borderline low at the time but just in spec went to 42 in 6wks but l was still doing a little training so it may have risen and dropped over that period.
Hb has alwasys been good
Ferritin sits in the high 60's now.
Hct hovers between 40-44% depending on how high the training load.
White cell count rose from 2.8 and sits between 3.5 and 4.2 which is better but still borderline but all other tests say l'm ok and havn't been ill or had a cold/flu in over 3yrs touchwood.
Like Dave and many others l get dissy alot when standing quickly, but it was 3yrs ago that l lost balance and hit the deck one night after a looong day in the saddle went to the doc and had the tests done,
oh one other thing my sodium levels were really low at the time so l make shure l add salt as l never even owned a salt shaker before that and doc reconed that was part the reason of going down, and yeh live and learn.

 

[Bailsibub]

Went to the doctor this morning. He looked at my blood test results and said that hemoglobin numbers can vary, so it might be nothing...just that my numbers were low at the time. He wants to do more testing to get a better picture.

He said the lightheadedness was vasovagal syncope, like some of you have experienced, fainting from low blood pressure/slow pulse.

He told me, for now, start eating more red meat and that we'll see what happens with the testing.

It turns out that he has experience working with athletes and these problems. So no need to seek out anyone else for now.

lt was 6wks between tests so not too shure, l also had really low white blood cell count [still do] and this is what they were more interseted in.
Ferritin went up to mid 60's over 12wks and hct which was borderline low at the time but just in spec went to 42 in 6wks but l was still doing a little training so it may have risen and dropped over that period.
Hb has alwasys been good
Ferritin sits in the high 60's now.
Hct hovers between 40-44% depending on how high the training load.
White cell count rose from 2.8 and sits between 3.5 and 4.2 which is better but still borderline but all other tests say l'm ok and havn't been ill or had a cold/flu in over 3yrs touchwood.
Like Dave and many others l get dissy alot when standing quickly, but it was 3yrs ago that l lost balance and hit the deck one night after a looong day in the saddle went to the doc and had the tests done,
oh one other thing my sodium levels were really low at the time so l make shure l add salt as l never even owned a salt shaker before that and doc reconed that was part the reason of going down, and yeh live and learn.

 

[JVattack]

He told me, for now, start eating more red meat and that we'll see what happens with the testing.

I was anemic for about 3 months (luckily during winter), and got the same advice. Something my doctor noted was to eat your iron with some source of vitamin C, as it will aid in the absorption of the iron. Also, focusing on heme-iron sources (meats, organs, animal tissues) will help the absorption more than non-heme iron sources (vegetables, beans, plant mass, supplements).

It took about a month to move my Hb and Hct back towards normal. Ferritin can do its own thing, and will vary from test to test since it's a measure of the iron-carrying protein and not iron itself. There is a correlation, but not always a steadfast relationship between iron levels and ferretin levels. Best numbers to watch are your Hct and Hb, as noted by a previous poster. It doesn't appear that you are "suffering" as far as FTP goes though - nice work .

 

[gman0482]

This thread was timely. I just had my checkup 2 days ago. I got a call today from my doc, and I had to go and do another blood test, because the initial one showed low red count. I have to wait for results, but most likely I'm anemic. I know my diet is the worst, eventhough I'm 79 kg (175lbs) and 6'4" tall (1.95m). I eat alot, but never eat breakfast, and barely any fruits/veg's.

 

[alienator]

Yup. I had that along with a low white blood count. I took, and still take, 450 mg of Iron twice a day. The wbc thing was fixed with a bunch of Neupogen injections and IV infusions, as well as a change in med doses. Transplant patients tend toward anemia neutropenia.

I didn't have any issues w/ riding w/ anemia. The neutropenia, though was a different matter.

 

[swampy1970]

So my work had a 'health day' and a bunch of nurses came in to check everyone. Got my bloodwork back and it turns out I'm anemic, 12.7g/dl.

In terms of performance, my FTP is still alright even though my training load has gone down, it's around 320 on 85 CTL.

I've been a little lightheaded at times though. And was close to passing out last week after I kneeled down and rose too fast. I had a spell there during the early summer where my power went down. But I let the training load go down, and power went up. FTP now isn't too far off the season high (Maybe the lowered training load let my hemoglobin catch up?).

I made an appointment with the doc for Monday. He's a gen. prac, but he helped me with an allergy problem that had slowed me down for years and years. I don't know how much experience he has with anemia in athletes though. So should I try to find a doc that specializes in athletes with this condition? (a pretty tall order here in Korea...but doable through my team) Or is this something a gen. prac can handle?

Anyone had something similar? And what did you do?

By the way, my diet is decent. No junk. I did stop taking a multi everyday (been taking it every other day) as per the recommendation of a nutritionist, who stated with the extra food cyclists eat, that's a better strategy. Red meat every few days. Eggs almost every day.

Any input?

I've been diagnosed anemic many years ago. Not sure what the cause was - doc couldn't pin point that. Have iron injections and was placed on a liquid iron supplement for a while. Nasty nasty stuff... Only Englands' NHS could devise something that made used engine oil taste nice. I'd rather spend all day licking rusty girders than drink anymore of that stuff.

Unlike Greg LeMonds mystical comeback with a couple of iron shots in the backside during the 89 Giro, it took almost two months for things to get back to normal. I want what Greg was taking...

 

[Bailsibub]

After getting a second set of test results today, my blood is doing better. I'm above the anemic cutoff line now. I'm at 13.3 HB. Hematocrit is 39.3, just above being considered too low, too.

Been eating dried apricots, cooking with an iron skillet, and taking my multi every day for about a month now. Don't know if this is helping...but at least the numbers are better.

I guess I won't be getting nabbed for a high hematocrit any time soon.

 

[jsirabella]

I guess I won't be getting nabbed for a high hematocrit any time soon.

Glad to hear you are getting better. I have to see a hemotoligist monthly and usually gibe a bag or two as I have the exact opposite issue. I inherited from Dad a form of Polycytemia (sp?) where my level has been as high as an 18 or so. I have now been able to get it down to the 16.3 level which is just on the borderline. I have a rare blood type she explained that is not the form of polycytemia that will kill you as your father has lived for years even till this day and may eventually burn out. My Dad is 83 and still has not burned out but has not killed him which one Doc said it would.

The doc said I would be great at marathons and too give blood often as your body puts it back real quick.

-js

 

[swampy1970]

Here's a little bit of reading from Michele Ferrari:

Welcome to 53x12.com

... and a topic from the 53x12 forums about a rider who was anemic:

Welcome to 53x12.com

From what I remember years ago it took about 3 to 4 months to get this back in order again after becoming so anemic that it really affected my performance on the bike. I even had iron injections - which is why I was so amazed by LeMonds almost near mystical instantaneous improvement in form due to 'iron injections' curing his 'anemia'.

I was borderline anemic about 12 months ago and the question still bugs me as to why this is the case. Anemia in guys is oftne down to either damage through heavy repetative stress (like lots of running on concrete) or blood loss. I don't run so therefore...

 

[Bailsibub]

Thanks Swampy. That thread is informative.

I'm not sure why I was anemic. Don't think I was bleeding, and I definitely don't run. Just training, and at a relatively low volume.

I've cut back the volume and CTL is down in the mid-70s. Maybe the combo of more iron and less work (recovery) is making the difference. Could have been what happened to Lemond, too. But then again, I remember he was having fatigue issues at the end and it was chalked up to some rare condition...that or the buckshot still inside of him....

Here's a little bit of reading from Michele Ferrari:

Welcome to 53x12.com

... and a topic from the 53x12 forums about a rider who was anemic:

Welcome to 53x12.com

From what I remember years ago it took about 3 to 4 months to get this back in order again after becoming so anemic that it really affected my performance on the bike. I even had iron injections - which is why I was so amazed by LeMonds almost near mystical instantaneous improvement in form due to 'iron injections' curing his 'anemia'.

I was borderline anemic about 12 months ago and the question still bugs me as to why this is the case. Anemia in guys is oftne down to either damage through heavy repetative stress (like lots of running on concrete) or blood loss. I don't run so therefore...