Spring has arrived. The days are getting longer, and temperatures are starting to rise! It’s time for outdoor training!
With Spring also come allergies and some respiratory problems, which end up causing issues for many fitness enthusiasts and even athletes.
Therefore, if you are a Personal Trainer who conducts classes, you must take extra care and provide reliable advice to your athletes!
👉 What precautions should you take with your athletes facing these types of issues?
👉 And how can you adjust your athlete’s training plan?
Motivation is everything... but medical advice is vital!
First of all, if anyone tells your athlete that, for example, asthma can be disabling and that physical exercise might be too complicated an activity, do your utmost to disprove that.
Yes, asthma and allergies can be disabling, especially when the symptoms become complicated. But this only happens when there is no proper medical supervision. According to the Portuguese Association of Asthmatics, about 40% of patients with rhinitis have asthma, and 80% of asthmatic patients have rhinitis.
Therefore, if your athlete has any respiratory complications (or suspects they do), advise them to consult a doctor who can evaluate all conditions and how to control the disease(s). Usually, in an athlete with coexisting asthma and allergic rhinitis, controlling the asthma is essential so that physical activity can occur without significant restrictions. In fact, regular physical exercise helps prevent moderate to severe cases of asthma.
But one of the main “drivers” for the athlete is, surprisingly, motivation: the symptoms of asthma and rhinitis are extremely limiting. As a Personal Trainer, you will need to balance your attitude between understanding and providing the necessary push for the athlete to feel compelled to follow the plan.
However, you should not recommend therapies or medications such as inhalers or antihistamines: these types of recommendations must be made by the doctor supervising your athlete, with the plan developed jointly.
There are no limits in sports!
There is also a belief that certain sports are “forbidden” or at least not recommended for asthmatic or allergic patients.
Well... this belief has a reason to exist: indeed, some sports like cycling, winter sports, running, diving, or mountaineering (especially the latter) carry a higher risk of asthma symptoms than others. Here, doctors choose to apply a series of recommendations and, in some cases, restrictions, to these activities.
However, the applied rule is that an athlete suffering from asthma or rhinitis should choose a sport they enjoy, following medical instructions. If they are just starting their sports practice, they should be advised to opt for sports more compatible with their condition, but if they choose another sport, they should be encouraged to pursue it because there are no limits in sports. And there are dozens of Olympic athletes who have asthma.
As a Personal Trainer, you will also play a fundamental role in this journey. You should instill in your athlete the need to strictly follow medical recommendations and reinforce that physical exercise is extremely important for disease control.
Final considerations
Asthma and allergies are not barriers to physical exercise. On the contrary: they are even recommended to help control the condition, improving the life of each athlete.
As a fitness professional, you should convey precisely this message: that it is possible to practice physical exercise, achieve the goals set in the training plan, and at the same time control a disease that can be disabling.
Here at BOOMFIT, we believe that sport is for everyone: that is what drives us every day, producing content like this and offering Personal Trainers equipment and accessories that help change lives. And if you need help, our team is always ready to assist you.
Happy training!
