Super Fit But Still Feeling Winded? Exercise-Induced Airway Constriction Might Be to Blame

Photo credit: Getty Images/Todor Tsvetkov

It seems simple enough: Log hours at the gym and your endurance improves, right?  Unfortunately, for people who experience exercise-induced airway constriction, more hours at the gym doesn’t always yield such awesome results.

If you feel a tightness in your chest, labored breathing and other asthma-like symptoms like wheezing during exercise that continue up to 15 minutes post-sweat session, you could have exercised-induced airway constriction. And it’s not just the Soul-Cycling, weight-lifting, treadmill-running gym goers who are suffering winded workouts, cold weather athletes are especially at risk due to the dry climate.

There are two types of exercise-induced airway constriction: exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB) and exercise-induced asthma (EIA). Not everyone who has EIB has EIA, and generally, most people with EIB do not have asthma.

That’s why it’s important to visit the team of experts at Allergy & Asthma Specialists for testing. Stop in any of their locations in Center City, Blue Bell, King of Prussia, Jenkintown, Doylestown, Lansdale, Pottstown or Collegeville and a board-certified allergist will assess your breathing by performing an exercise challenge procedure. You’ll be asked to run, and then post-run physicians will conduct a pulmonary function test to gauge your lung health.

Once you’re diagnosed, your allergist will work with you to develop the best play to make for treating your EIA–whether that’s practiced breathing strategies or sideline assistance from medications.

Exercise airway constriction can be a real problem for elite athletes and rookies alike. In fact, prior to the 2010 Winter Olympics, reports indicated that as many as 50 percent of Olympic cross-country skiers, ice skaters and hockey players suffer from exercise-induced asthma.

Don’t let the fear of exercise-induced asthma derail your dreams of being a champion. Exercise-induced breathing problems can be successfully managed with a thorough examination and pulmonary function testing by a board-certified allergist.

For more information visit Allergy & Asthma Specialists online at www.AllergyandAsthmaWellness.com or schedule an appointment by calling 1-800-86COUGH, ext. 2.