Symptoms of exercise-induced asthma include:
- wheezing
- coughing
- shortness of breath
- chest tightness
- fatigue
- decreased athletic performance
Managing exercising-induced asthma
Exercise-induced asthma can be managed with certain medications. Inhaled bronchodilators are often prescribed and can be used prior to exercise in order to open up your airway.
What you can do
To manage exercise-induced asthma you need to know what triggers your asthma symptoms. For example, if your symptoms occur most often during strenuous activity in cold, dry air, you may need to exercise indoors during the winter or wear a scarf or facemask when you exercise outside. Other things you need to adjust your routine for include high pollution days, and high allergen days.
Increasing physical conditioning has been shown to decrease the incidence of asthma attacks. Another key to minimizing symptoms of exercise-induced asthma includes performing a thorough warm-up before workouts.
Exercise-induced asthma doesnt have to keep you from physical activity. In fact exercise is an important part of your treatment plan. Many successful athletes have exercise-induced asthma that they control with a combination of medication and environmental control. You too can remain healthy and physically fit with proper education and use of medication for your asthma.

