Do you get the lungs "worked over" feeling?

[Gammmmo]

I have mentioned this elsewhere in passing but periodically when I have finished training/racing e.g. on the bike or erg, and after quite hard sessions it's almost as if my lungs feel inflamed slightly for an hour or so after. Anyone get this? It's not the same thing as "pursuiters cough" (as in track cycling) where with very high intensity work the throat becomes irritated.

[aussieluke]

exercise induced asthma is a thing, maybe look that up?

after a 2k erg test my chest feels irritated and I get a cough for a few hours after

...but only ever had it after 2k erg tests and 5k run tests

[mdpfirrman]

I have mentioned this elsewhere in passing but periodically when I have finished training/racing e.g. on the bike or erg, and after quite hard sessions it's almost as if my lungs feel inflamed slightly for an hour or so after. Anyone get this? It's not the same thing as "pursuiters cough" (as in track cycling) where with very high intensity work the throat becomes irritated.

You're in better shape than me already, but I have had that happen to me. Feels like your lungs are burning or that you have stabbing in the side of the lungs (inflamed lining). If I have that happen, I take Vitamin C and Vitamin E in a mega dose. I've read that it can prevent exercise induced asthma (something that I suffered from as a kid) and it keeps your lungs protected from pollution (there are several studies out there on it). I don't take it too often, though, as I've also read it can hinder performance improvements it works so well to decrease inflammation all around (I suppose there's something to the "no pain, no gain" old slogan"). Usually when that happens, my lungs will feel inflamed for a few days or at least a day, so that's about the only time I take E and C together. I take C by itself more often.

I know a guy that was an Ironman competitor (a pretty strong Masters competitor) that used to take it but not during his speed work periods of training but at other times and during his workup to the race (his taper). He strongly felt it helped with inflammation but hindered performance too.

Here's an article that talks about the performance issue with C and E (that work synergistically together well).

http://www.runnersworld.com/newswire/vi ... m-workouts

[Gammmmo]

I get asthma but having religiously taken becotide twice daily for 5 years or so, I don't even now need the blue puffer (salbutamol) before doing sport. I do take it sometimes as "insurance". The feeling in the lungs I am talking about *could* be related by I am well versed obviously in what asthma feels like...and the feeling I am on about in the opening post feels almost more muscular but in the chest area and obviously internally. I've had the basic ECG (note this isn't as good as say an echocardiogram) and all is fine. It's intermittent and just feels a bit weird.

[Tim K.]

I have exercise induced asthma and if unmanaged it seems to exacerbate the symptom but is not the cause (in me). For me it seems to be dry air. I tried increasing humidity from the very dry 30% up to 45% at 20degC and it seemed to help a little but was not the answer. I then moved the rower from general population to solitary and heated the room to 25-27 and drove the humidity up to 55-65%. I was symptom free all the way to physical failure, both from the exercise asthma and the burning lungs/funny tasting coughs for a week after.

I had to have a gale blowing on me to stay comfortable and I sweat way more than I normally did but cold humid air will end up being very dry as you inhale and heat the air up 15 degrees. A normal LSD dawdle or hard sprints I dont find any of this necessary but anything over 2-3 minutes of full out max effort and it is absolutely required or I suffer for a week or more.

[Carl Watts]

Yes occasionally get a bit of a cough and the whole chest area feels like its had a serious workout but has an internal not muscular feeling to it. Humidity over here is always high, got two *** DELETE - SPAM *** bashing away to get it down to 50% in the house but the rowing room gets closed off and with a fan in the window its back up to 65-75% during the rows. The massive amount of airflow in an out of the lungs can cause some throat issues but you just have to manage it as part of the training but its never got to the point that its interfering with the rowing. Sorry not a very scientific analysis.

[bisqeet]

do you train at home or the gym?
is there a good air circulation ?
humidity?

not that the cleaning cupboard with open bottles of bleach is located under the seat...

sometimes its the enviroment and not directlys health related

[mdpfirrman]

I did a 5K timed today after lifting and I have that feeling today in my right lung only. Feels like a deep bruise inside my lung when I take a deep breath. It used to last days. This time it lasted around 20 minutes only. Perhaps it's just working your lungs really hard (harder than they are accustomed to) gives that feeling.

[chrisl]

I was wondering about this worked over feeling and, having experienced it on longer sessions, I have a theory. I find that if I don't concentrate on my breathing, I tend to just breathe as and when, a bit all over the place. If I try to time my breathing to the strokes, I find that for a short period I feel like I'm fighting it. It feels like I'm ready to breathe out but I'm at the point where I should be breathing in, so I consciously breathe in more and now feel like I've over-exerted my chest a bit. Rinse and repeat a few hundred times and I end up feeling like my chest has had a workout of its own by the end of the row.

I've found a few things which help manage this:

1. Set drag somewhere comfortable for the length of the row. I usually row around 135 but drop it to around 125 for longer rows as it feels more comfortable as the session wears on
2. Drop the stroke rate to around 20 spm or even lower initially while getting into the swing of the session. If I don't consciously do this I find myself speeding up at the expense of posture and breathing.
3. Concentrate on good upright posture, good technique, don't slouch and compress your upper body, take it steady, using the steady stroke rate to give you time to do this
4. Breathe naturally at first and get into a rhythm, which I find is breathing in on the drive and out on the recovery. I find it takes me maybe 8K before I feel like I'm in a sustainable rhythm where all these points have come together, my breathing is good and my chest and upper body is upright but not tense.

Point 4 seems to be the crux of it for me. If my breathing is against the grain then my chest feels worked out. I need to let my breathing find its rhythm and then this feeling goes away. For my breathing to find its rhythm, I have to focus on it inititially (point 4) and let points 1-3 take care of rate and posture so point 4 can do its thing.

I'm not saying that this is the cause for everyone, but the above points have indeed greatly reduced this worked over chest feeling for me, so it's worth looking at and seeing how it pans out for you.

Chris

[H2O]

A slight irritation in the lungs is the proof that the workout was effetive.

[jackarabit]

Anyone see an associational or causative relationship between " EPOC" (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption) and exercise asthma? Pattern of respiration after exercise becomes noticable as several shallow breaths are followed by a couple of lung fillers--like a transmission hunting the efficient gear.