Recently I have been getting this wierd rash post-workout. It is most pronounced in areas that are hot and/or poorly ventilated, e.g. in the picture you can see that it’s worst where the waist-band of my bike shorts was. But it covers pretty much my whole body. It disappears again in about 30 minutes.
I think I can rule out any regular allergy, since nothing has changed (environment, nutrition, clothing, etc.) from the time when I didn’t have this.
Any ideas what could be causing this?
looks likes hives??
Many substances can trigger hives: Medications Shellfish, fish, nuts, eggs, milk, and other foods Pollen Animal dander (especially cats) Insect bites
Hives may also develop from: Infections like mononucleosis or illness (including lupus, other autoimmune diseases, and leukemia) Emotional stress Extreme cold or sun exposure Excessive perspiration
Symptoms Return to top Itching Swelling of the surface of the skin into red- or skin-colored welts (called wheals) with clearly defined edges
The welts may enlarge, spread, and join together to form larger areas of flat, raised skin. They can also change shape, disappear, and reappear within minutes or hours. The welts tend to start suddenly and resolve quickly. When you press the center of a red welt, it blanches (turns white).
Exams and Tests Return to top
Try washing your workout clothes in a stronger detergent, also, dont let them sit around wet. If you’re not going to wash them right away, at least let them dry.
I get something very similar. My skin Dr says it is not uncommon. I have done long distance events all my life and at 36 I start getting it. But it can happen, i am told. It can be caused by certain food allergies, or by food allergies that are then heightened when exercising. You can use a ZNP soap on the affected areas when you shower and there is a cream. Ill check at home for creams name, it is essentially the same active ingredient used for treating eczema and/or dandruff. I forget the name of rash, but it was described to me as a form of hives.
looks like something called exercise induced uticaria…
see web site posted…http://www.aafp.org/afp/20011015/1367.html
antihistamines help…
In a select group of persons, exercise can produce a spectrum of allergic symptoms ranging from an erythematous, irritating skin eruption to a life-threatening anaphylactic reaction. The differential diagnosis in persons with exercise-induced dermatologic and systemic symptoms should include exercise-induced anaphylaxis and cholinergic urticaria. Both are classified as physical allergies. Mast cell degranulation with the release of vasoactive substances appears to be an inciting factor for the production of symptoms in both cases. Exercise-induced anaphylaxis and cholinergic urticaria can be differentiated on the basis of urticarial morphology, reproducibility, progression to anaphylaxis and response to passive warming. Diagnosis is usually based on a thorough history and examination of the morphology of the lesions. Management of acute episodes of exercise-induced anaphylaxis includes cessation of exercise, administration of epinephrine and antihistamines, vascular support and airway maintenance. Long-term care may require modification of or abstinence from exercise, avoidance of co-precipitating factors and the prophylactic use of medications such as antihistamines and mast cell stabilizers. (Am Fam Physician 2001;64:1367-72,1374.)
I have to agree with Last Tri, those are hives. I used to get them all the time (actually still do). This time of year your skin dries out so when you do perspire, in areas where your clothes rub against your skin, hives like this aren’t uncommon.
My remedy was to “moisturize”. Not after you are done, but all the time. I also switched soap to something with a moisturizer like Dove…I hate the smell personally, but it works.
I don’t like doing it, but it beats the hell out of itching my skin bloody 
On occasion, I get something just like that when I have my flak jacket or flight gear on for extended periods of time when it’s hot outside. It typically happens when I can’t ventilate and dry off, or when I can’t shower for extended periods of time during ops or in the field. I actually saw a dermotologist for it and while I forget the scientific name, the name on the street is called “prickly heat” as it is usually associated with sweating and then cooling off and the pores/glands get clogged up. For me it can be very painful, but this is rare. It has felt like bad accupuncture at times, but I just suck it up because that’s pretty much all I could do. The dermo said the same thing basically, just to suck it up, as powders help to a limited extent.
I am allergic to latex and get the same sort of hives from waistbands, running short elastic inserts, sports-bra straps, race-belts. Only ever have problems to clothing elastics when exercising, supposedly the sweat and rubbing allow the latex particles to reach the skin.
Maybe go see a doc? Also check any changes made to detergents, fabric softeners…
I had the same thing a few weeks ago and never figured out what caused it. I blame it on some squash I ate but I really don’t know.
It really itched bad and the more I scratched, the worse it got.
At first I used some Tolnaftate (Tinactin) and that took away the itching but didn’t cure it.
Just before I was going to see a doctor I aquired some Triamcinalone .10% and that cleared it up in a few days.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triamcinolone
If it happened again I would just go to the doctor, get treated and be done with it.
jaretj
first suspect to investigate: latex allergy.
Have you changed soaps or laundry detergents? You may have also developed some type of allergy to something that you were not allergic to before…wheat gluten, etc.
I had poison ivy/oak/sumac…one of the three the other week and after a run it looked much worse than it did 20 minutes post shower b/c of the heat my body generates.
I’d go see doc… especially if it covers your whole body.
I also experienced this problem over the last 6-7 weeks having noticed that the problem started within a day or two after returning from a week of cycling in Vermont. At first I thought it was a reaction to the local water supply compared to the water in the places we stayed in Vermont, but it appears more likely to have been a combination of seasonal alergies and differences in climate between Texas and Vermont. As for the itching, typically I would have an extreme irritation that started on the lower scalp on the back of my head as well as roving patches on my upper, middle, and lower back, thighs, hind quarters - okay everywhere. The itch in some areas resulted in wheals and welts after minor (sometimes major) scratching and although I typically did not experience the problem during the day, once the wife and I got to the gym after work, thats when the iritation would start back up. After I changed into gym attire, while the tradmill was not a problem, the itching would slowly start to ramp up, especially on exposed areas and contact points and by the time we got home after our workout, I was suffering all over.
To try and resolve this, we changed laundry detergent, I took scalding hot baths with epsom salt and tree tea, applied lotions/creams for poison ivy which would ease the overnight, moisturized with things like Cetaphil and Nexcare (Aveno did nothing and smelled bad), and even tried over-the-counter hydrocortisone cream with aloe. Finally, about 2 1/2 weeks ago, I appled a generic version of Benadryl lotion to all effected areas immediately after drying off from shower for a couple days and while I cannot say for certain whether this actually ‘cured’ the problem, I can say that I have mostly been unaffected over the last week and a half.
Go see a dermatologist. As you can see from the forum responses, it could be a number of things.
I have suffered from eczema in the past, and the only thing that managed to bring me relief consistently was antihistamines. Since most of them make you drowsy, I asked my doctor for a prescription of Allegra, which worked marvelously for me - and no drowsiness!
Of course, antihistamines may not work for you. You can try all kinds of things like steroid creams and moisturizers.
See a dermatologist.
Maybe your workout clothes were sprayed with Pepper Spray by a training partner
Chris
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Wow, I am stunned because I have had the EXACT same thing this fall. Trained pretty much all year but this rash didn’t start showing up until about September. I am a pretty hyper-allergic person, so I haven’t been too overly worried about it, but did think it a little odd. The rash appears primarily around my lower torso/pelvic area and down my thighs and then is gone in an hour or so (of course if I scratch it too much, I have to deal with those tiny little scabs).
I find that an oral anithistamine has helped somewhat, and using anti-itch/antihistamine cream helped when applied during symptoms.
I will try some of the other recommendations here as well. A no-scent/hypoallergenic detergent is probably a good place to start.
edit: Oh, and I agree, its most definitely hives.
Disclaimer: I am a physician but not a dermatologist.
That looks like urticaria (hives). It is the result of histamine release from mast cells in the skin. The potential causes are several, and fortunately most are not serious. I had this for several days many years ago. I saw a dermatologist, and it was treated effectively with an oral antihistimine. The problem has rarely recurred, but never serious enough to merit treatment. From what I have read about this, you may not find out the exact cause.
I agree with the suggestion of seeing a dermatologist because he/she will ask the appropriate questions to make sure that this isn’t related to something more serious.
It sounds like you have a very difficult issue on your hands. As many have alluded to already there seems to be an abundance of methods to tackle eczema with some more fruitful than others.
You may have heard of a few natural methods which are starting to become increasingly popular of late, one of which was tried by a family member. We were all really pleased to see very favourable results over a long term and so it’s something I thought I would mention in the hope that you may find it beneficial.
After a lot of internet trawling I came across one site that appears to be a very safe source of reliable information as it provides a comparison and review of natural eczema treatments . I really hope this is somewhat useful!
Best of luck!
Put on your workout clothes and just hang around without actually exercising. After a couple of hrs check to see if you have them. If so, then it is something in the clothes, detergent, bacteria, fabric, etc.
Are you sure you are not allergic to latex? That is exactly what my skin looks like if I wear something with latex in the waistband…
Could also be a mechanical degranulation from the compression and rubbing. Have you had dermatographism before?