Medications That Don't Mix With Exercise
When it comes to mixing exercise with
medication, the latter can sometimes affect the former. Therefore, if
you’re using medications, you really need to know all of their potential
effects, good and bad, on you. Here’s a quick scoop on which meds could
be clashing with your cardio.
1. Beta-Blockers
What Are They?
This group of medications, also known as beta-adrenergic blocking
agents, are used to treat high blood pressure and are also commonly
prescribed for conditions such as migraines and glaucoma.
Beta-blockers lower the heart rate, which is the opposite of what
exercise induces – an increased heart rate. Therefore, combing both
gives your body conflicting messages, and people tend to get fatigued
very quickly.
What to Do
While it’s always a good idea to speak to your doctor or pharmacist
about how to accommodate exercise while on beta-blockers, you should
consider asking if you really need to be taking them. In some cases it
is and in other cases, there are better alternatives. For example,
acupuncture has been found to help some migraine sufferers. If they are
necessary, you should begin with as low a dose as possible to see if
your ability to exercise is adversely affected.
2. Pain Medications
What Are They?
There are two types of pain medications: acetaminophen, which is an
alternative to aspirin for pain relief, and ibuprofen, which treats
swelling and inflammation as well as pain.
Pain is usually a signal of tissue injury, so overusing pain medication
can be a concern. For example, if you have a sprained ankle and you take
a lot of medication to get through the pain, that can be bad because
the sprain won’t heal adequately and you might re-injure it.
There’s also some concern about non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
such as ibuprofen, Advil Motrin, and Aleve. These can cause fluid
retention, which isn’t particularly kind on the kidneys and puts more
stress on the cardiovascular system.
What to Do
Firstly, if you have a sprained ankle, let your body rest and heal
rather than mask the pain with medications so that you can continue
exercising. If it’s a milder pain that’s afflicting you and you’re using
ibuprofen or Motrin, try not to take the medication for more than a
week. If you need longer pain relief, switch to an acetaminophen
medication to treat it and avoid that fluid retention stress.
3. Antidepressants
What Are They?
While there are many medications that trigger sleepiness,
antidepressants are the more common ones as they alter the chemical
balance in the brain to help stabilize and improve your mood. Drowsiness
and fatigue are usually at their worse during the first few weeks of
taking them. Furthermore, they also have the added side effect of weight
gain.
What to Do
There are many different types of antidepressants and if yours causes a
lot of drowsiness, talk to your doctor about taking alternative
antidepressants. Also, starting off with a lower dosage of a new
antidepressant can help the sleepiness factor.
4. Antihistamines
What Are They?
Drowsiness is a common side effect of antihistamines, especially older
generation medications such as Chlor-Tripolon and Benadryl.
Antihistamines block or decrease histamine, which is triggered by an
allergic reaction such as coming into contact with pollen or animal fur.
When you’re taking antihistamines your alertness can be affected.
Therefore, for example, if you’re a runner and you take antihistamines
that make you drowsy, you can misstep and become injured.
What to Do
There are newer generations of antihistamine medications such as Alegra,
Claritin, and Reactin that don’t cause the same level of drowsiness, if
at all. However, if you prefer the older antihistamines, time your
medication well. The older ones are usually shorter-acting, so they
might last only four hours and once that drowsiness has worn off, you
can exercise.