u/RarePomegranate8195

Hi all,

I’ve been training road cycling seriously for ~1.5 years. My current FTP is 383W at 96 kg (36 y/o, 201 cm), so on paper my fitness looks solid.

However, I’ve had bronchial asthma since childhood (FEV1/FVC = 69%), and I’m starting to suspect it affects my performance more than I thought. I’m on Symbicort 320 daily.

Recently, I noticed something interesting in Garmin Connect — the ability to compare workouts with friends. I started looking at respiratory rate (RR), and the differences surprised me:

When riding with less-trained friends, my RR is often 30–50% higher than theirs at similar efforts

After short hard efforts (e.g., attacking a segment), their RR drops quickly, while mine stays elevated for a long time.

During hard efforts, I often “hit a wall” at ~170 bpm HR and ~50 brpm — breathing feels maxed out and my legs suddenly lose power.

What’s confusing is that:

My estimated HR max seems lower than expected for my age.

Despite structured training (with a coach), good nutrition, and sleep, I often feel excessive fatigue in my legs and struggle to complete sessions as prescribed

TSS doesn’t seem to reflect how fatigued I actually feel.

I recently came across the idea that asthma may increase the metabolic cost of breathing, which could explain higher fatigue and slower recovery — even if traditional metrics don’t show it.

My coach doesn’t consider respiratory rate a useful metric, but from what I’m reading, it might actually be quite important — especially in my case.

Questions:

Do any of you track respiratory rate trends in training? Have you found it useful?

Has anyone with asthma noticed similar patterns (high RR, slow recovery, early fatigue)?

Do you use RR in real-time pacing or just for post-ride analysis?

Has anyone tried devices like Tymewear? Is it meaningfully better than standard chest straps (I use Polar H10)?

I’d really appreciate hearing from people with similar experiences, especially asthmatic cyclists or coaches who take breathing metrics into account.

I’ve been training seriously for about 2 years and have had asthma since childhood. My aerobic base is solid — I recently did 100 km at 298 W avg with HR 147. My current FTP is ~383 W (~4.0 W/kg at ~96 kg), and my threshold HR is around ~166 bpm — so I’d say I have a decent engine.

For a long time, I assumed the issue was just being overweight or not fit enough — but as my numbers improved, the problem didn’t go away.

The issue: I consistently fall apart during hard accelerations in group rides.

After digging into my FIT files, I’ve noticed a clear pattern: my respiratory rate sits around ~34 brpm during Z2 efforts (where I’d expect ~22–25 for a healthy rider). Once I go above VT1 (~157 bpm), especially during attacks, my breathing spikes to 45–50 brpm and doesn’t recover for 20+ minutes. At the same time, power drops by 200–400 W within ~15 seconds while HR stays relatively stable — it feels like a ventilation limit rather than muscular fatigue.

Current protocol:

• Symbicort 320 daily (only consistent since February, after years of inconsistency)
• Salbutamol: 2 puffs via spacer ~15 minutes before rides
• Temps during recent rides: ~15–17°C

What’s frustrating is that everything below threshold feels fine and continues to improve. It’s specifically repeated efforts above VT1 that hit a ceiling every single time — and this has been consistent for the past 2 years.

Questions for other asthmatic cyclists:

1. Has anyone added montelukast (Singulair) specifically for EIB during hard efforts? Did it actually make a noticeable difference?
2. Do you use a structured warm-up to trigger the refractory period before a hard group ride?
3. Did you notice meaningful improvement after 6+ months of consistent ICS use vs the first few months?
4. Has anyone done exercise spirometry testing, and did it change your treatment approach?

I’m planning to see a sports pulmonologist, but I’d really appreciate hearing real-world experiences first.

I’ve been training seriously for about 2 years and have had asthma since childhood. My aerobic base is solid — I recently did 100 km at 298 W avg with HR 147. My current FTP is ~383 W (~4.0 W/kg at ~96 kg), and my threshold HR is around ~166 bpm — so I’d say I have a decent engine.

For a long time, I assumed the issue was just being overweight or not fit enough — but as my numbers improved, the problem didn’t go away.

The issue: I consistently fall apart during hard accelerations in group rides.

After digging into my FIT files, I’ve noticed a clear pattern: my respiratory rate sits around ~34 brpm during Z2 efforts (where I’d expect ~22–25 for a healthy rider). Once I go above VT1 (~157 bpm), especially during attacks, my breathing spikes to 45–50 brpm and doesn’t recover for 20+ minutes. At the same time, power drops by 200–400 W within ~15 seconds while HR stays relatively stable — it feels like a ventilation limit rather than muscular fatigue.

Current protocol:

• Symbicort 320 daily (only consistent since February after years of inconsistency)
• Salbutamol: 2 puffs via spacer ~15 minutes before rides
• Temps during recent rides: ~15–17°C

What’s frustrating is that everything below threshold feels fine and continues to improve. It’s specifically repeated efforts above VT1 that hit a ceiling every single time — and this has been consistent for the past 2 years.

Questions for other asthmatic cyclists:

1. Has anyone added montelukast (Singulair) specifically for EIB during hard efforts? Did it actually make a noticeable difference?
2. Do you use a structured warm-up to trigger the refractory period before a hard group ride?
3. Did you notice meaningful improvement after 6+ months of consistent ICS use vs the first few months?
4. Has anyone done exercise spirometry testing, and did it change your treatment approach?

I’m planning to see a sports pulmonologist, but I’d really appreciate hearing real-world experiences first.