Barely there voice
 

Occasionally, after a hard ride i notice that my voice is a bit...absent/raspy. strange phenomenon only lasts for a couple of hours or so. did a bit of googling and apparently not completely uncommon.

this really only started after i got a trainer and was able to put in double the normal miles i used to be able to do.

anyone observe this and did it ever go away after acclimation to the additional riding.

Yep, I get this when I'm really whipped.

A possibility - sinuses - the congestion loosening up and raining to your throat (I've had sinus issues for decades. When they are plugged up, not an issue for my voice, but when they loosen, if I don't spit and snort rigorously, my voice goes. In the extreme, my throat gets infected and it's the old antibiotics routine again. I spent thousands on prescription powerful inhalents for decades until a nurse practitioner suggested a $50 oral regime that restored my sinuses to close to normal.)\

For 30 years, your experience was my norm. Dropping nhibitions about being }proper", honking nad snorting especially on the bike helped me a lot. Being "safe" in this COVID world is not a help to my throat and voice.

Ben

This is common. Right now I sound like a frog. I'm not too worried about it.

If you used the right search terms, you could find medical information about this phenomenon. Not sure it would help much

Ride with you mouth closed and breath through your nose.

If you're a human, it doesn't matter how the air goes in, it still passes through your throat. But you might be an egret, and swallow fish during rides (while breathing.) I dunno.

Air entering through the nose is filters and moistened by the nasal cavity.

Ever ride in 30* weather, if you breath through your mouth you'll have a VERY sore throat. But if you breath through your nose, you'll be fine.

Or maybe you're a dolphin and have a "blow hole".

Nope, just another poorly designed human who has to breathe and swallow with the same tube. Aside from an absolute inability to pedal, a dolphin would make a great cyclist. Excellent lung capacity. Very aerodynamic.

Funny you should write this. I was just thinking the other day what a total mouth breather I am when on the bike. only in descent does my IQ appear to go up. :lol:

Seriously though, I cannot get enough O2 in during my rides.

I recently was reminded to keep my mouth closed when riding home in the preserve at dusk. Some of those bugs are really big and stick in the back of your throat. And no amount of water seems to make it go away.

My voice used to nearly disappear after long rides in hot weather until I started carrying much more water and drinking far more of it and more often than I used to. That seems to have taken care of the problem.

What was it that fixed it for you?

Thanks.

Glenn

No idea if it causes throat problems, but it's quite plausible. Air coming through the nose is filtered and moistened,, and the nose adds nitric oxide. There's tons of reasons why nose breathing should be preferred:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifes...131_story.html

Yes, all air goes through the throat regardless, but the air coming through the nose is different chemically and in volume from air brought in from the mouth.

My nose often runs like crazy when I ride, especially in the cold. I don't get a sore throat but do sometimes find myself hacking a little bit for an hour or two after a ride.

...and already shaved. I mean, come on- those dolphins are smooth!

Happens to me all the time. It's the reason that I now have bells on all my bikes as I can't trust "on your left" coming out when I want it to (unless I force it to project as a bellow, that is).

yep, my wife has that effect on me too

Barry

Back to the original problem, that hoarseness hits me when I'm dry. Frequent sips from water, coffee, tea, both rehydrate the larger body and moisten the throat and vocal cords.

I actually do a small amount of sneezing and coughing during and shortly after a long ride, which I've always attributed to pollen allergies. Occasionally, I'll get a sore throat, but it literally comes and goes in a matter of several minutes.