Training & Nutrition - prednisone

any fellow rider ever had this prescribed?if so any effect i should be aware of?thanks

Yes, I was on pretty heavy doses for quite some time. This drug, a corticosteriod, was originally developed for WWII pilots, but because of side effects it was not used. It is the side effects that are now used medicinally. Anti-inflamitory, immune suppressent primarily. Often prescribed for back disc problems, respiratory issues, etc. Other side effects are sleeplessness (I couldn't sleep more than 2-3 hours per night), irratability, increased appetite and resulting weigh gain. Some people get a chipmonk type face, puffy cheeks, too. All these go away once the medication is discontinued.

There are other problems associated with long term use - development of cataracts and lowered resistance to infections due to the lowering of the immune response.

All in all it still remains a great medication for the conditions it is generally prescribed for.

That is the ONLY thing that will aleviate my spring allergies, I've had no problems.

Problems depend a great deal on dose range and duration of therapy. Rheumatoid arthritis patients get good results out of daily or alternate day doses of 5-10mg. Acute allergic attacks might be treated with an initial dose of 40-60mg and then a rapid taper over 2-3d. Someone with arterial inflammatory disease might be put on 100mg daily for weeks or months. Asthma flareups might be treated with 40-60mg first dose and slow taper from 40/d to 10mg/d over 7-14days. Gout might be treated with 60mg first dose and 20mg daily for 2-3days. Reactions to these different regimens will be all over the map.
Steve

any fellow rider ever had this prescribed?if so any effect i should be aware of?thanks

I have taken approx 7 mgs of Prednisone daily for the last three years. It was prescribed in order to combat Polymyalgia. Prior to taking Prednisone I could barely walk or dress myself or wash my hair - you get the idea of the incapacity I had.

In contrast to that lack of mobility due to the Polymyalgia disease, Prednisone has permitted me to amass 2251 miles already this year and climb approx 60,000 ft of hills. In addition my weight is stable at 69 Kgs, RHR at 48 and I sleep and eat well. Not bad for a 67 year old. You will understand why I consider Prednisone to be a wonder drug to me. Without it I would be a cripple.

Perhaps in my case Prednisone could be considered to be a "performance enhancing drug?"

Hope this recommendation helps.

Best Regards

Tedward.

2251 miles already this year and climb approx 60,000 ft of hills. In addition my weight is stable at 69 Kgs, RHR at 48 and I sleep and eat well. Not bad for a 67 year old.


i hope i can ride that well.....EVER! :)

I had an inflammed liver due to a bad bout of mono in high school, and I was prescribed prednisone. Didn't sleep for three days. Liver is good though.

how long did slepless nights last?i have been up for two days.did you try to take any sleep aids with? thanks

any fellow rider ever had this prescribed?if so any effect i should be aware of?thanks

This second post is to more correctly address the original question.
Initially I only tried to demonstrate that Prednisone has helped me immensely, and was not something to be feared in small doses.

So let's see what effects I can relate - I don't get any more migraines whilst on Prednisone. That's a real plus.
Neither do I get night sweats/hot flushes, nightmares, disorientation, hallucinations, foul tongue (taste), or rheumatism which were experienced under Polymyalgia Rheumatica.

On the negative side my skin has become rather delicate and tears easily. Otherwise I am probably in the best shape of my life mostly due to a regular cycling program.

So perhaps my experience is not typical, as I was suffering from a particular disability. For other persons the effects may be dissimilar as seen in other replies on this thread,

Hope this is a more sensible response on my part.

Good luck with the Prednisone if it is prescribed.

Cheers

Prednisone was the only inhaler that worked at alleviating 100% of my asthma. I was prescribed the short-term albuterol inhalers along with the other sodium inhalers. Then some of the other steriodal inhalers. They only worked at getting rid of 80-90% of the asthma, but that last bit still kicked my @ss! It was actually a resident that prescribed me prednisone and it was a miracle drug! I was completely asthma-free for over a year with just a 2-3 week run of prednisone.

Then I got a minor cold and some allergies from cats or pollen and the asthma's back. Went to hospital to get another prescription of prednisone and no go. The resident had become a full doctor and was working in some other hospital. All the doctors here want to prescribe me the latest wiz-bang high-profit drug like Advair. Didn't go jack-sh|t compared to the prednisone. I tried asking them to give me whatever that previous resident had prescribed. Even tried to get a copy of my records, no luck. I'm just gonna switch to a different facility, bastards!

I took 2 weeks worth of Prednisone for an inner ear condition. didn't help any. However, during that 2 weeks I was "The Man" so to speak. Instead of spending 1-1.5 hrs in the gym I was spending 3 hrs. I cleaned out my garage, all my closets and drawers, took care of lots of odd jobs around the house I had been avoiding. I had tons of energy but had a hard time sleeping at night. When I came off (gradully) I felt so tired. I missed a whole week at the gym or riding.

The sleeplessness last continually during the high dose stages of the drug. Some aids like benodryl may assist sleeping but it isn't a quality sleep.