Exercise and a Runny Nose

I love working out. It makes me feel great, is rewarding and has gotten me into the best shape of my life. There’s one small problem though. I think I haveexercise-induced rhinitis. The problem is caused by inflamed mucus membranes in the nose. Yuck, I know. And, when you’re working out, your mucus membranes produce more mucus than normal. The increase in production is supposed to stop any unwelcome particles from getting into the nasal passageways. For some people this is just fine, but for others, their membranes go way overboard and that’s when your nose turns into a gushing faucet.

The condition can be caused by a number of factors and itdoesn’tmatter if it’s cold or hot during your workout. Causes can range from irritants like perfumes to changes in hormones. Women often have this problem because of hormone fluctuations throughout the month or hormonal contraceptives. Gee, I wish it were easier to be female. Even drugs like Motrin can be at fault and stress could be another cause.

Every time I’m out on my bike my nose starts running, impeding my workout by making it hard for me to breathe. Many sources tell you to go to your doctor (yeah, I know) where you might get some kind of nasal steroid prescribed to you. But, I’m one of the lucky few who are actually allergic to steroids. And, when a steroidal nasal spray was prescribed to me, I had terrible head and neck pain after taking it. If you get a headache like I did while on steroids, tell your doctor and checkwithan allergist or dermatologist to see if you're allergic. After testing me, my dermatologist told me that he was very surprised to find out about my steroid allergy because doctors rarelythink that what they prescribe is what's causing a problem. So, don't put all your trust in a doctor and assume that something else is causing pain. So, what to do now?

I read that thenetipot is a good way to ward off swollen nasal passages. Anetipot is actually a nasalirrigatorand began as part of IndianAyurvedicmedicine over a thousand years ago. Normally, neti pots are shaped like tiny teapots or watering cans. The one I have is shaped like a bottle and allows you to force a saline solution through the nasal passages. It sounds kind of scary but once you do it a few times it’s fine. I promise that if you use the right ratio of water and salt it won’t hurt at all.

It’s supposed to rinse out any irritants that might trigger that drippy nose. Lucky for me, I already have one! Allergies have always been a problem for me and I was getting sick of taking so much medication so, I bought my very firstnetipot last summer. I haven’t been good about using it though. Whenever I have a cold I might use it, but that’s very rare. Every day is usually the recommended dosage. So, I’m going to start using mynetipot everyday like prescribed and see if it helps. If not, I suppose I’ll just have to bring a giant wad of tissues with me every time I workout.

For those of you who can take steroidal nasal sprays, they just might provide the relief that you need. A carefully prescribed dose of steroids is supposed to be fine to use, but talk with your doctor and make sure that there aren't any underlying issues. And,wouldn’tit be great to go through your workout uninhibited by that snotty nose? Yes, I think so.