Knackered by cold temperatures

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Graham
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Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by Graham »

I know I'm getting old and weedy, but winter rides seem to be taking a toll.

Specifically . . . .

Yesterday, after a 24-miler with 400 metres of ascent : 5 degrees C with significant windchill :-

* My lungs feel rough

* My fingers feel fat, with minor discomfort ( chilblains ? )

* Chilblains on my feet also

* After showering, all fingers on one hand were white / completely drained of colour

During the ride I felt adequately warm, both core & extremities.

Is this normal ?
Cyril Haearn
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by Cyril Haearn »

The body can lose heat more easily than warming up, maybe you should dress up to be too warm

The human body is a bit like a car, some days it works better or worse for no apparent reason at all, then I just go home and relax
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AlaninWales
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by AlaninWales »

"* After showering, all fingers on one hand were white / completely drained of colour" - sounds like poor circulation leading to chilblains.

Protect your elbows, wrists and ankles more - it's where the major blood supply nears the surface that needs warming, to allow the blood through to your fingers and toes. Cold wrists and ankles will cause blood supply to the extremities to be cut off, even if hands and feet are well muffled.

Possibly you also need more fuel. Cold weather means greater fuel needs, so look for higher energy foods until the salad days return.
Norman H
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by Norman H »

Whether or not your symptoms are normal is probably something worth checking with your doctor

The white fingers are typical of Reynaud's Syndrome which is often triggered by cold. I occasionally suffer from this in my right index finger, particularly when gripping a cold steering wheel first thing in the morning.
thirdcrank
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by thirdcrank »

Perhaps the hands and feet problems are circulation-related and are just being highlighted by the cold. I think deteriorating circulation is one of the things lumped in with getting "old and weedy." I wonder if the rough lungs are the result of all that surface area coming into contact with cold air. What in considered "bracing" by somebody younger feels worse in later life. No matter how well you wrap up, breathing lets in the cold. It's not unusual for somebody a bit older to have to try a bit harder than they did earlier in life, which leads to breathing harder. Remember that a lot of your contemporaries will have given up making any sort of effort long ago. The first symptom of heart disease I had was on a ride on a bitterly cold day. Really wrapped up and warm and on a flat route chosen to minimise the risk of icy descents. They told me afterwards that the cold makes the blood that bit thicker and it's the lungs where the cold air gets in. I don't know the answer. I see that the anti-pollution face mask thread has been resurrected. I know riders who cover their mouths and noses in cold weather one way or another but I've found the resulting condensation too uncomfortable, even when walking, never mind cycling.

Not so many years ago, it was much more common for riders at every level in the sport to have a Winter layoff. I'd say keep enjoying your cycling while ever you can. Try not to worry. I say that because it only makes this sort of thing more noticeable and possibly worse physically and I speak as a worrier.

(My own GP at that time simply couldn't grasp the idea of anybody cycling uphill, so his advice was not much help in cycling-related matters.)
(Edited to remove al appalling apostrophe :oops: probably another symptom of old age.)
Last edited by thirdcrank on 30 Nov 2017, 11:18am, edited 1 time in total.
old_windbag
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by old_windbag »

Your white fingers sound very much like reynauds. And the chillblains too if your toes are affected and you've put them into warm/hot water... or put them next to a hot radiator. I've had this since teenage and touching any cold object( i.e. supermarket fridge section ) triggers my circulation to close down to protect my core from dropping too low. As a primary condition it is more a nuisance factor than harmful( something like 1 in 10 people have it and more women than men ) but it can be a secondary symptom of other diseases. I've met umpteen people with it and many are outdoorsy people, it's not bad circulation just the blood vessels contracting as they would for others at a much lower threshold. I've seen several procedures( non drug by the way just warm-cold methods ) mooted to reset your internal temperature threshold, if you look around the internet you'll find them. But try to warm up naturally rather than applying direct heat to extremities when returning home.

Some people get pain when the circulation returns but I've never been to sure as that was due to trying to put direct heat on the cold fingers/toes. But cold weather as TC says is not good for those with underlying heart issues as blood pressure can go up. I see a noticeable drop in average speed once into cold denser air, cold temperatures and lack of sunlight. They really do have a marked affect. Give me 25 degrees C any day, but rare to ever see that around here.
Last edited by old_windbag on 30 Nov 2017, 11:10am, edited 1 time in total.
Psamathe
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by Psamathe »

old_windbag wrote:Your white fingers sound very much like reynauds.....

I believe I suffer from this (never seen a Dr, never "diagnosed"). I find occasionally and sometimes for no reason the top of a finger (tip of finger to 1st joint) can go like wood - loose feeling and feels cold. I've found this can be caused by cold weather but it has also happened in hot climates (e.g. in Egyptian desert during the heat of the day).

It generally lasts for 15 mins and I find I end-upclasping the finger tip in the other hand (no idea if this helps).

But (in my case) it is different from cold. I find when cycling in the cold my hands gradually slow down and operating gears and brakes becomes clumsier and slower. My (possible) Raynaud's only affects a single finger tip, rest of hand works fine.

Ian
Psamathe
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by Psamathe »

Graham wrote:I know I'm getting old and weedy, but winter rides seem to be taking a toll.....

Whilst I don't suffer the specific things you mention in the cold, I do find my "performance" seems lower in colder weather. Not that I race or anything but in cold weather I do find my average speed is significantly lower and rides seem harder work - and I do wrap-up warm enough in that I don;t feel cold (not even through my lycra shorts).

Ian
old_windbag
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by old_windbag »

Psamathe wrote: I find when cycling in the cold my hands gradually slow down and operating gears and brakes becomes clumsier and slower.


Thats my warning to return home! Not a nice feeling where strength decreases to finding an sti hard to shift, I've even dropped to a middling gear to avoid the need for any further shifts.

Ray mears once said if you can't do some eskimo sign then you are in trouble, it was like an "O" with each finger to thumb. Well I most often can't in cold weather, but then my life doesn't depend on it as it would in the wild. My finger strength and dexterity really suffer in the cold....... but if well warmed up I can be ok when out walking at brisk pace( I hate slow walkers ).
mercalia
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by mercalia »

well cold air dont do the lungs much good and dont contain as much oxygen as warm air? I do believe, some one correct me, that as you get older lung capacity decreases?
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Graham
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by Graham »

Thanks for your responses. I'm feeling better after a day without exertion.
BP 126/68 : pulse 53 bpm

Beeping cold out though !!!

I need to relearn ( every year ) that there is a temperature level below which I-really-have-to-be-careful.

This threshold temp gradually rises as the years go by.

The feedback / manifestation of symptoms is always after the event :-
- white hands after the shower
- chilblains one or more days after the ride

It was worth it though :wink:
Cyril Haearn
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by Cyril Haearn »

I think one forgets the seasons each year, just learnt again today, did not ride far but I stopped outside to read the paper

Ran out of energy and had to visit a certain fast-food outlet for a veggie burger

One time I planned a 100 km ride in midwinter, by 30 km I had eaten all my food, turned back home. Now I change my plan if it is too cold. Or too hot
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old_windbag
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by old_windbag »

Cyril Haearn wrote:Now I change my plan if it is too cold. Or too hot


Goldilocks cycle rides. :)

As the season progresses I acclimatise to the lower temperatures such that in spring if it's 10 degrees C it'll feel positively warm...... but then after summer meeting 10 degrees again feels positively cold.

On the white finger front I tend not to do anything about it other than perhaps try to keep my hands warm in gloves. But some for many years have purported that ginkgo biloba, horse chestnut or ginger help. I'm never too sure about supplements but gingko is also promoted for memory benefits. They must be vasodilators to some degree, so too alchohol. I don't drink but the times I have( only 1-2 pints ) and have been outdoors in sub zero temperatures my fingers were ungloved but toasty warm and no white finger..... so that seems to work. Also stress can exacerbate it and make it come on more readily.

Don't let the odd chillblain put you off what can on occasion be still calm pleasant days. I find wind chill and damp days can be unpleasant, pulling heat out of you easily.
mercalia
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by mercalia »

I have been worried of late at how debilitating I find the cold weather say 2 C finding any exertion distressing. I wear a nice warm ex army thermal jacket and I thought I was warm. For the first time today wore the accompanying thermal trousers on top of my fleecy ones and no such problem, the temp out side was 2.8 C. So I tentatively conclude it was cold legs - not so cold as to feel cold but cold enough to say contract the blood vessels and make it harder for the heart to pump and to feel stressed? I suppose fit and young people here warm up fast so dont experience any such effect?
So for those like me who find cold weather a trial I suggest you experiment with extra leg warming.
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foxyrider
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Re: Knackered by cold temperatures

Post by foxyrider »

I always ride better in warmer weather with fewer layers on, I expect to ride slower in the cold winter months.

This winter i've done plenty of longish rides (several centuries since the New Year) often in temperatures down to -4c or even lower. I've taken to carrying a spare base layer and jersey to change into at the tea stop which removes the cold damp kit from the equation for a bit.

I've always suffered with cold feet but once the cold footwear is removed they generally warm up quite well. I do get cold finger, even sat here typing this, usually one or other index finger, strangely not usually both together. Seems to be less of a problem with looser gloves/mitts - I have six different glove levels from trackies to ski gloves with covers, too warm though and the sweat builds and gets cold which is counter productive.

Rather than a face mask, if it gets really cold air temp I pull on the silk balaclava. Apart from adding a layer to ears and neck it helps preheat the air into the lungs. It does get a bit damp but being silk it quickly dries out in the cafe!

I rarely jump straight in the shower, instead I strip the cold damp gear off and have a hot drink first - that gets the core temp up quicker than the shower alone.
Convention? what's that then?
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