Anyone here ever train whlile taking Adderal or Ritalin? If so, what were the pros and cons.
No personal experience, but prescribe them all the time. About 20% of NCAA D1 athletes are on them.
Pro:
probably a performance enhancing drug (at least for endurance sports)
treat your ADHD
Con:
banned substance by WADA (NCAA allows with "physician documentation)
may worsen hypertension
may precipitate arrhythmias if someone has long QT syndrome
Not actually cons that people sometimes say are cons:
Heart rate response - non issue
Dehydration/heat illness - theoretical concern that has never been demonstrated clinically
Sleep disturbance - rare if used properly.
Growth retardation - super controversial in young kids. Definitely not an issue in old kids and adults
Appetite suppression - true, but very mild in typical dose.
Andy
Again, no personal experience. My roommate used to take it before finals and he ended up staying up all night and then crashing for 12 hours after the exam. Not sure it would be the best thing to fit into a training schedule
I take it to very rarely to motivate myself at work to make cold calls. I always feel terrible the next day.
Dehydration/heat illness - theoretical concern that has never been demonstrated clinically
I know we are talking about different doses here…but weren’t there quite a few problems (extreme dehydration, death) back in the 50-60’s from cyclists racing in the heat while taking amphetamines?
Would those same problems be a risk for someone on adderal, putting in an extreme race effort while competing in the heat?
-Physiojoe
Although both of these act in the same way as Meth, they are much, much weaker in their stimulation levels. You don’t really see the tachycardia, tachypnea, psychosis and hypertension with them. I consider them probably less stimulating then a OTC dose of pseudophedrine or a heavy dose of caffeine. It is terribly ironic that one takes a stimulant to help with hyperactivity, but you have to remember that the drug “stimulates” the centers that add more control to the brain.
It is interesting to see that the prescribing rate of adderal/ritalin has gone way up and so has the prevalence of body art. Yet it can’t be too much like meth as these kids all still have their teeth.
I’m ADD and took Adderall for years. Once I got into triathlon seriously I quit taking it. It’s pretty dangerous to think of doing a VO2 workout on the stuff. So many high school kids have dropped dead from the stuff. I took it when I mtn biked and I didnt feel well doing it. Red bull’s and coffee are what help me now. You could also look at Provigil. It’s a non stimulant that has similar affects. Lucky for me, my dad is a psychiatrist (MD)so I get to have my pick of drugs I want to test and I can get instant questions answered. In the end I went with caffiene instead. As a kid growing up though, I need the other stuff.
I’d taken it (adderal) a long time ago, and not more than a typical dose…I can tell you it was completely unlike a heavy dose of caffeine, which I am actually sensitive to.
-Physiojoe
what Andy said …
I’ve never had any training problems on Ritalin, and I train in some wicked heat and humidity.
That said, I wouldn’t take it before hard or long sessions, and … I don’t need it then anyway, and I can just take it afterwards. For the bulk of ‘routine’ training, like if I’m just getting a workout in before work or coming back from somewhere and working out, I’ve not noticed any untoward effects.
Just from what friends or acquaintances who train and take stimulants say, some of them do react to the different medications quite differently, so that might be a factor you want to consider …