I Donated Blood and Now I Suck!

[ohCanada]

I'm 10 days past my donation and my rowing has gone all to pot - still!

I'm new to this. Is this a normal consequence of donating blood? I keep thinking that IF my poor performance on the rower is related to the donation, it should be coming back - any day!. But I've got no jump - my legs are dead, heavy. I was rowing 30-45min. sessions before and now I'm exhausted at 7.

What's happening?!

[G-dub]

http://runnersconnect.net/running-injur ... rformance/

[ohCanada]

Ayup. That must be it. Thanks G-dub.

[valgozi]

4 weeks it took for my Heart Rate's to start coming back in line with pace. 6 weeks to be fully recovered and improving. A lot of people recover a lot faster.

Threshold intensity is so very disheartening in the first 10 days. Dial it right back to easy UT2 to get some exercise in and help build back the red blood cells without stressing the body too much.

If you are competing at all I would research platelet donations as this does not then take the red blood cells.

If you are just exercising for fitness then you have to step it back and understand you won't be able to exercise at the same intensity for almost a month.

[ohCanada]

Thanks so much, Valgozi. I'm learning and just doing this for fitness, but I was starting to get a bit discouraged. Hearing about your experience was very helpful, and now I'll know what to expect each time I donate blood. Thanks again.

[valgozi]

It is very discouraging but it does come back as soon as your body has fully replenished the red blood cells. Every stroke on the rower should bring a smile knowing you that you are slower but for the reason that you have donated to help save other peoples lives.

Not done platelet donation myself because it is quite inaccessible, can only do it 9 - 5 at a hospital around me. From a fitness point of view it affects it far less every one says.

I did a ton of googling few years back, everything online seems to say it doesn't effect fitness too much. It probably doesn't but it moves your fitness curve enough to the left that when you could keep a certain pace at threshold for 30mins+ that is now very anaerobic so TR instead of AT and so you plunge off the cliff pretty quick.

It is very different to stopping exercising and then coming back to weeks months later as it has gone the second the blood comes out, quite a shock mentally. Only thing that comes close is having really bad cold or flu.

I would push the monitor arm back so you can not see the screen and just row at a comfortable pace for a good duration of time. Focus on technique and just try and get in some good time on the ergo. Rowing to a heart rate cap can also work as you then won't push too hard. Changing to calories rather than pace might help if you have to see the monitor ticking away the time.

[ohCanada]

I would push the monitor arm back so you can not see the screen and just row at a comfortable pace for a good duration of time. Focus on technique and just try and get in some good time on the ergo. Rowing to a heart rate cap can also work as you then won't push too hard. Changing to calories rather than pace might help if you have to see the monitor ticking away the time.

You read my mind! Yesterday I just covered the screen and found a "happy place", and just focused on my form. I've always found it impossible to row UT2, but I made myself go slow and easy . . . and I was able to get a nice row in. I might keep covering the screen for a while! I did think about asking C2 for an option of no screen, but at the end of the row I did want to enter my distance into my logbook.

Thanks again for the encouragement, Valgozi.