Winter Cycling - The Nose: Open or Closed?

Hey gang,

I was helping a friend get some school sports supplies for his children yesterday. His daughter will be taking swimming, so therefore needed some nose plugs, while his son will be playing baseball, and - interestingly - had nasal dilator strips (!) on his recommended (but thankfully not required) list of accessories. The plugs I can understand, having swam myself as a teenager, but the nasal strips? Hmmm.... well, in any event, this got me to thinking.

I know the limited data on nasal dilator strips (Breath-Right, etc.) has been equivocal if not negative. Indeed, if one were to wear them while winter cycling, I would think that not only would these be of little benefit from an air-intake perspective, but also that drainage would probably be worse. So, with that in mind, for those of us who are mostly mouth breathers, I wonder if some simple nose plugs such as those for swimming or kayaking would be of benefit in decreasing the troublesome problem of drainage in cold weather. I will be picking up a set for myself when I get a chance to experiment with - only a two dollar investment or so - but has anyone tried this before?

Thanks.
T

Hey gang,

I was helping a friend get some school sports supplies for his children yesterday. His daughter will be taking swimming, so therefore needed some nose plugs, while his son will be playing baseball, and - interestingly - had nasal dilator strips (!) on his recommended (but thankfully not required) list of accessories. The plugs I can understand, having swam myself as a teenager, but the nasal strips? Hmmm.... well, in any event, this got me to thinking.

I know the limited data on nasal dilator strips (Breath-Right, etc.) has been equivocal if not negative. Indeed, if one were to wear them while winter cycling, I would think that not only would these be of little benefit from an air-intake perspective, but also that drainage would probably be worse. So, with that in mind, for those of us who are mostly mouth breathers, I wonder if some simple nose plugs such as those for swimming or kayaking would be of benefit in decreasing the troublesome problem of drainage in cold weather. I will be picking up a set for myself when I get a chance to experiment with - only a two dollar investment or so - but has anyone tried this before?

Thanks.
T

I don't have a clue what you are talking about. But good luck anyway.

One problem is that eventhrough you are a "mouth-breather" Some of your intake and exhaust goes through your nose. I do not know how badly a restriction to your nasal cavity would affect your breathing, so I would advise against for land activites.

Plugging your nose while riding....... sounds insane.

Definitely wouldn't work for me. I need all that air. I'm a drippy mouth breather too.