I’m helping a youth cyclist who rides a lot. With heavy doses of low Z2. The athlete got sick and was prescribed a steroid. He stopped riding. When he was feeling better and his RHR dropped and HRV was back up, he resumed low intensity riding at a reduced volume.
It’s now been about 20days of vastly reduced exercise volume since the last dose of the oral steroid. His HRV is still reduced & RHR is still elevated. He has undergone a ton of medical testing and given clear health. Anyone else experienced the after-effects of a course of oral steroids?
Bit of an undiagnosed infection that presented like the flu (fever etc) and a slight nasal infection. From what I can tell, a winter cold that went too far with a suppressed immune system from training. He recovered briefly and either got sick again or it came back. So the Dr threw the book at it with oral steroids, inhaler and he finished a course of antibiotics. Knocked out the illness but the lingering effects from the medications appear to be suppressing HRV and elevating RHR. I’ve gone down the rabbit hole and there is some information about the effects of a round of steroid. But he went from the oral steroids to a steroid inhaler. No longer on either of them. Its been a couple weeks and his numbers are trending (slowly) better with really reduced activty and chopping intensity to nearly nothing.
Sounds like perhaps a virus(EBV maybe) that is still in him. None of those drugs will work on those types, and coming back so soon would present the exact symptoms he is having..I would get some more tests in that area, could be treating something untreatable..
Hence my question. Long COVID often presents like this. My daughter has POTS, which also has the elevated HR, and which began with a seemingly mild viral infection.
When your blood vessels fail to constrict (helping to move blood), your heart rate increase dramatically to make up the difference. A simple test is to check the heart rate when lying, then when sitting, then when standing.
This is my real concern. Something that is lingering. We’ve been going day by day. And his numbers are improving with really gentle work with a maximum of 2hrs in low Z2. It’s as if every day is a test to see if he rebounds at all. If he doesn’t rebound, he takes the day off. If he does, then he will go out on a mild ride. I’m very hesitant to loosen the leash. I guess my post is in hopes of anyone else’s experience with a round of steroids and the lasting effects. Answers vary from 10days to months. And for anyone reading this, a round of steroids and or a steroid inhaler will completely inhibit the nervous system response to training.
I have no experience with the steroid regime your guy is on, but if you are correct in some of your assumptions, it seems it can present like a virus, like the one Ken and I both put forth. I had EBV 4 times in my career and after, and you are describing my symptoms to the tee. I have also heard from friends with long covid the same exact stories and feelings. I suppose we are just cautioning you to not just assume it is the steroids, tons of athletes feel like this all due to different viruses.
Have him lie down for five minutes, then take his HR. Then sit for five minutes, take his HR. Then stand for five minutes, take his HR. If pulse rises significantly, you have a problem.
antibiotics can destroy your microbiome could lead to lower performance and general lack of well being specially if your coming from a low point … just a suggestion .. I am no doctor
For the sake of sharing knowledge. This is what HRV looks like inside TP. There is a very slow but gradual rise in HRV over a long period. 22days ago was rock bottom. 4 days ago was a day he attended practice which was supposed to be somewhat easy and wound up being 220 TSS and knocked him way back. But to my surprise, he rebounded with 1 day off. Nowhere near out of the woods, but there is some progress.
8? Weeks and the athlete has turned a corner. Sadly, he has gone from high 90’s CTL to the mid 60’s so there’s a bit of gradual work ahead. He raced last weekend, and it went as expected. But HRV is trending up a lot. Interestingly, his sleep quality is improving. Whereas recently, even with complete absence of exercise and total rest, his sleep was very disrupted.
