Training & Nutrition - Pipe smoking.

I have trouble calming down. I live a high stress lifestyle, bicycling being one of them. I dont believe in god or prayer, I don't have children, I'm not married; Praying, spending time with my family, and sleeping with my wife are all out of the question as far as finding time to relax and enjoy finer things in life.
So recently I've taken up pipe smoking.
It's not something you inhale, especially when done outside or in a sufficiently ventilated area. Sure, its still a poison, so mouth cancer or any variant thereof is still a possibility dependant on the amount of poison consumed, but how bad do you think pipe smoking is for a bicyclist?
I haven't been able to tell a difference in lung function, which im not suprised about considering you dont inhale the stuff, but are there any studies focusing specifically on pipe smokers and athletic fitness?
I know I'm ruining my health, but I'd rather smoke a pipe and ponder life than get drunk and ruin it. Any thoughts? Any pipe smokers out there who also ride bicycles/race?

I have trouble calming down. I live a high stress lifestyle, bicycling being one of them.
Silly me. I thought cycling was a stress-relieving activity. It is for me.

Smoking a pipe or anything unhealthy would really stress me out. :twitchy:

try to find a healthier stress reliever before you become dependant on this.

Pipe smoking is the "least unhealthy" way to use tobacco, but it is still unhealthy.

It is impossible not to inhale some of your own smoke, unless you blow it into a shop-vac hose or something. I always smoked pipes outdoors, but would still get breaths of my "secondhand" smoke.

While nicotine can be beneficial to one's mental performance, it's still not good for your cardiovascular system. My heart gets enough of a workout when I'm riding. I don't know what blends you smoke, I recall some serious nicotine jags from rich English blends (like Dunhill Nitecap, my all time favorite.)

Mouth/tongue/lip cancers can be spotted early if you get your teeth cleaned every six months, as dentists routinely do a quick visual cancer screening. Esophagus cancer might be a different story. Lung cancer rates are still higher for pipe smokers than non smokers, but obviously nowhere near the rate of cigarette smokers.

I love smoking a fine briar packed with tobacco from a freshly opened tin. It is relaxing, but I decided to just let it go. I still have a couple of pipes somewhere, unused. Pipes are the easiest form of tobacco to quit, in my book. If I were you I'd do it now.

I'm not married

Smoking a pipe will guarantee that.

Try to do something about the stress. It's not a badge of honor, it's unhealthy and among other things leads to poor choices like taking up addictive poisonous substances.

I always thought that my bicycle riding time as a stress reliever. I go out to ride and my mind clears and I just ride. Maybe try other sports or activities?

Pipe smoking is the "least unhealthy" way to use tobacco, but it is still unhealthy.

It is impossible not to inhale some of your own smoke, unless you blow it into a shop-vac hose or something. I always smoked pipes outdoors, but would still get breaths of my "secondhand" smoke.

While nicotine can be beneficial to one's mental performance, it's still not good for your cardiovascular system. My heart gets enough of a workout when I'm riding. I don't know what blends you smoke, I recall some serious nicotine jags from rich English blends (like Dunhill Nitecap, my all time favorite.)



Mouth/tongue/lip cancers can be spotted early if you get your teeth cleaned every six months, as dentists routinely do a quick visual cancer screening. Esophagus cancer might be a different story. Lung cancer rates are still higher for pipe smokers than non smokers, but obviously nowhere near the rate of cigarette smokers.

I love smoking a fine briar packed with tobacco from a freshly opened tin. It is relaxing, but I decided to just let it go. I still have a couple of pipes somewhere, unused. Pipes are the easiest form of tobacco to quit, in my book. If I were you I'd do it now.

Thank you for the intelligent and helpful response.

I have trouble calming down. I live a high stress lifestyle, bicycling being one of them. I dont believe in god or prayer, I don't have children, I'm not married; Praying, spending time with my family, and sleeping with my wife are all out of the question as far as finding time to relax and enjoy finer things in life.
So recently I've taken up pipe smoking.
It's not something you inhale, especially when done outside or in a sufficiently ventilated area. Sure, its still a poison, so mouth cancer or any variant thereof is still a possibility dependant on the amount of poison consumed, but how bad do you think pipe smoking is for a bicyclist?
I haven't been able to tell a difference in lung function, which im not suprised about considering you dont inhale the stuff, but are there any studies focusing specifically on pipe smokers and athletic fitness?
I know I'm ruining my health, but I'd rather smoke a pipe and ponder life than get drunk and ruin it. Any thoughts? Any pipe smokers out there who also ride bicycles/race?

The nicotine will limit how fast you can hammer the pedals for how long. I think it limits oxygen transfer with the red blood cells.

Unhealthy? You bet.

I have smoked a pipe since I was 20 and I will be 68 in another month. At work I would pass the semi-annual pulmonary function testing with flying colors. As good or better than the non-smokers. At 67 my pulse and blood pressure are still below normal at rest. I can still ride 40 to 70 miles a day on the bike. Just can't keep the speeds up too high for very long.

As to the risk of cancer. I look at it this way. I put 37 years in several different chemical plants. Three years in one that made organic textile and paper dyes. At least half of the chemicals we used are classed as carcinogenics. And this was before the days of OSHA and NIOSH. Then a bit over 30 years in a plant that converted vinyl chloride monomer to various types of PVC resins. That job included synthetic rubber production with exposure to a bunch of residual benzene.
Some time read the labels on stuff you use around the house and run the chemical names through a book on hazardous materials. Like the shower gel the wife brought home a few weeks ago. Formula includes styrene and acrylic. In a shower gel!!!

Look at the active agent in OXY 5 or Oxy 10 anti-acne salve. Benzyl peroxide. At work I was required to wear a rubber suit while handling it. While kids smear it on their faces at home.

In the chemical industry. Any organic with an odd number of carbon atoms is a potential carcinogen.

So I have a fatalistic view of the cancer risk. The everyday thing is that it really cuts down the speeds on the bike. It will also catch up with you on hills when your oxygen demand goes up. Short hills, no problem. Long hills will kill you.

just quit it. I used to smoke cigars all the time. You're not supposed to inhale with cigars either but in anything short of hurricane winds I would still get a good chunk of second hand smoke. After a while I did notice how it affected my endurance and I'm pretty sure it was the nicotine. As soon as I took a break from the smoking I was doing better in my workouts. So I decided to kick the recreational use of the damn things and reserve them for super special occasions only.

The nicotine will limit how fast you can hammer the pedals for how long. I think it limits oxygen transfer with the red blood cells.

Unhealthy? You bet.

I have smoked a pipe since I was 20 and I will be 68 in another month. At work I would pass the semi-annual pulmonary function testing with flying colors. As good or better than the non-smokers. At 67 my pulse and blood pressure are still below normal at rest. I can still ride 40 to 70 miles a day on the bike. Just can't keep the speeds up too high for very long.

As to the risk of cancer. I look at it this way. I put 37 years in several different chemical plants. Three years in one that made organic textile and paper dyes. At least half of the chemicals we used are classed as carcinogenics. And this was before the days of OSHA and NIOSH. Then a bit over 30 years in a plant that converted vinyl chloride monomer to various types of PVC resins. That job included synthetic rubber production with exposure to a bunch of residual benzene.
Some time read the labels on stuff you use around the house and run the chemical names through a book on hazardous materials. Like the shower gel the wife brought home a few weeks ago. Formula includes styrene and acrylic. In a shower gel!!!

Look at the active agent in OXY 5 or Oxy 10 anti-acne salve. Benzyl peroxide. At work I was required to wear a rubber suit while handling it. While kids smear it on their faces at home.

In the chemical industry. Any organic with an odd number of carbon atoms is a potential carcinogen.

So I have a fatalistic view of the cancer risk. The everyday thing is that it really cuts down the speeds on the bike. It will also catch up with you on hills when your oxygen demand goes up. Short hills, no problem. Long hills will kill you.

You mean to tell me its like some new world order is trying to control the population through hormone altering, dna destroying plastics? ;)
I'm an ex cigarette smoker, quit before I turned eighteen. I know what it feels like to have damaged lungs, thats part of the reason I quit. I do not feel the sort of damage to my body smoking a pipe once a day as I do smoking cigarettes, thats for sure, but the fact that nicotine limits athletic potential does not bother me that much considering some of the best racers I've seen smoke pot like its mana.
I dunno, I'll quit when it becomes a problem, I suppose. I read posts like yours and hear stories from people like you, and it doesn't do much to make me consider smoking a pipe is as serious a risk as drinking, smoking pot, cigarettes and cigars, etc. etc.
I would think living a life of constant stress, knowing that it does in fact disable whole segments of dna, would raise the chances of growing a cancer than would smoking a pipe in moderation while reducing stress (and otherwise eating a healthy diet, exercising, and having someone to love).

You mean to tell me its like some new world order is trying to control the population through hormone altering, dna destroying plastics? ;)
I'm an ex cigarette smoker, quit before I turned eighteen. I know what it feels like to have damaged lungs, thats part of the reason I quit. I do not feel the sort of damage to my body smoking a pipe once a day as I do smoking cigarettes, thats for sure, but the fact that nicotine limits athletic potential does not bother me that much considering some of the best racers I've seen smoke pot like its mana.
I dunno, I'll quit when it becomes a problem, I suppose. I read posts like yours and hear stories from people like you, and it doesn't do much to make me consider smoking a pipe is as serious a risk as drinking, smoking pot, cigarettes and cigars, etc. etc.
I would think living a life of constant stress, knowing that it does in fact disable whole segments of dna, would raise the chances of growing a cancer than would smoking a pipe in moderation while reducing stress (and otherwise eating a healthy diet, exercising, and having someone to love).

I avoid nicotine now....as an ex smoker, I really don't want to be tempted to take it up again.
But for you guys who do smoke a pipe or chew....you might want to read up on the pharmokenetics of nicotine. Its pretty nasty stuff. In fact, it makes a hell of an organic insecticide for your garden. Its not any better for you then it is for those bugs.

Go here:
http://shop.soundstrue.com/shop.soundstrue.com/Welcome.do
Search for "Pema"
Purchase one of her CD sets. Get at the root instead of masking it.
Ex-smoker, pipe, cigar, cigarette. Better off without it.

For a less woo-woo approach to stress managment, have a look at this:
http://www.heartmath.org/

Both of these approaches work. May even be complimentary.

Carbon, you know of heartmath? It's pretty cool stuff, one of my best friends/mentors got me into it a couple years ago. Blew my mind as far as how much control we have over ourselves, and what that control can do.
Thinking about it, all of you who say quit or reserve it for super special occasions are right. It really comes down to it being an excuse to meditate and dwell on things, a sort of physical door to a mental state of being. It's a nice flavor, it smells alright, but its bad. Bad things are bad, despite whatever rationalization may justify them, so I suppose its time for something else. Too bad it looks so cool and makes such a gentlemanly impression (albeit a dirty gentleman). :D
I guess I just hadn't felt in the right state of mind for a while, so I needed a little booster to remind me of what objectivity felt like.
What should I do to keep my ADD busy in social situations now?

pipe tobacco, I have no idea.

but, "back in the day" I knew a few guys who indulged in the whacky weed. It did not seem to slow them down any.

Carbon, you know of heartmath? It's pretty cool stuff, one of my best friends/mentors got me into it a couple years ago. Blew my mind as far as how much control we have over ourselves, and what that control can do.
Thinking about it, all of you who say quit or reserve it for super special occasions are right. It really comes down to it being an excuse to meditate and dwell on things, a sort of physical door to a mental state of being. It's a nice flavor, it smells alright, but its bad. Bad things are bad, despite whatever rationalization may justify them, so I suppose its time for something else. Too bad it looks so cool and makes such a gentlemanly impression (albeit a dirty gentleman). :D
I guess I just hadn't felt in the right state of mind for a while, so I needed a little booster to remind me of what objectivity felt like.
What should I do to keep my ADD busy in social situations now?Ritalin

I have trouble calming down. I live a high stress lifestyle, bicycling being one of them. I dont believe in god or prayer, I don't have children, I'm not married;

lets see...,not married, no kids...,

what about that makes for a "high stress lifestyle"?

your life is probably less stressful than most...

Ritalin

adderall

Seriously, though, a lot of the stress relief of smoking is the focusing of one's attention on a simple, ritualistic act. This is all meditation is, really. You could get the same benefits, or more, from ritualistically drinking caffeine-free herbal teas. I was diagnosed as ADD as a kid, and it's not one of the many BS diagnoses. I have to deal with it, so I have rituals to help calm myself down and focus. Tea, practicing violin, and exercise all play a role for me. I'm not one for drugs, where avoidable, and I wouldn't want to trade one for another in the form of nicotine.

I don't see how ritalin, adderall, or any other form of legalized speed would be a proper replacement.
I agree with you tadawdy. I'll try some good rooibos chai or something.

Well, I'm a glass blower (and pipe maker) so, yes, I use pipes. For tobacco and for other things (although the ratio is probably mostly other things, just a little tobacco).

But, making and selling pipes paid for my bike, so I hope people keep using them...

As a former smoker, I don't underestimate just how addictive nicotine is. I would consider any tobacco habit to be just marginally less harmful than taking up smoking crack cocaine. You would be much better off with a prescription for Xanax or Valium.

I have trouble calming down. I live a high stress lifestyle, bicycling being one of them.

Life is ours. You want too live a high stress lifestyle that is your doing.

Cycling is a stress reliever.

There might be cyclists out there who smoke/smoke pipes, I will tell you now, there no bloody good.

When riding near reservations and being offered to partake on the "peace pipe" it is down right, rude to turn down an offering of theirs like that. A cigar is probably much more damaging, but I believe that being mentally healthy/happy and not being TOO pure is just as important as the things we eat and the stuff we do.

I also quite enjoy the pipe. I make briar pipes (http://www.jspipes.com). It's my only vice. It may not be healthy, but I'm not planning on quitting. Favorite blends are Sam Gawith St. James Flake, and Escudo.

Joel those pipes are absolutely beautiful. You are certainly a very talented craftsman.
Just to let you all know, I've decided to try other things than pipe smoking. It's a very flavorful, enjoyment based hobby, but so is drinking good coffee and tea (which is what Imuh do now.)
RESEARCH I HAVE READ THAT PIPE/CIGAR SMOKING BICYCLISTS MIGHT FIND INTERESTING:
Regardless of whether you inhale or not, nicotine as a drug (which does get absorbed through the lining of the mouth very easily) limits the bodies ability to clear lactic acid, stimulates production of lactic acid, and stimulates the metabolic process glycogenolysis via epinephrine release (catabolization of glycogen/glucose). Not taking into account the countless other components of tobacco, nicotine alone will:
Sap fuel from the muscles
Cause more lactic acid to be released at lower intensities of work
Interfere with bodies ability to clear lactic acid.

Just something to keep in mind, I guess.

Please don't get offended, but most of the more high stress/anxiety people I have known have had, how should we say, "issues." Those issues always coming from growing up in high stress/anxiety households. Some recognize it, most bury it and go forward. The problem is that it's the proverbial rock in the shoe, you might build up a callous, but that dang rock is still there making you uncomfortable.
My wife realized real early that her father was a depressive abusive a-hole, and that mom was an enabler. She eventually decided to get help, and it probably saved our marraige. Her brother thought their childhood was all peachy and repressed it, he's mid 40's and still doesn't know what to do with his life, and going nowhere. He's now finally coming to grips with it and getting help.
Maybe I'm all wrong on this one, but give it some thought and see if it applies.

I enjoy a nice cigar with a plate of fresh fruits to unwind. I also enjoy a Port, Tawny or Pale Ale as well. Sometimes my wife has a cigar with me. Sometimes I get a lung full inadvertently. I know I will never race with Lance. I am at peace with my life and choices. The basis for the inner peace is my faith in God. It blows me away how much more I am responsible for, yet faith has set me free.

If you want the nicotine, then get some of those E-ciggs with just nicotine.

Its not about the nicotine, its about relaxing, enjoying the flavors, focusing on something trivial and self serving. Getting the brain focused elsewhere. I think it was Martin Luther, the Reformer who stated, I smoke my cigar to the glory of God.

"Freedom is a word I rarely use without thinking of the times that I've been loved."
-Donovan