Indoor Allergens and Winter Training Block Performance
Dust mites and mold undermine winter training by disrupting breathing, sleep, and recovery.
Darius Okonkwo
Section
8 stories in Athletic Performance.
Dust mites and mold undermine winter training by disrupting breathing, sleep, and recovery.
Allergic congestion fragments sleep stages athletes need for muscle repair and skill consolidation.
Unmanaged grass pollen allergies undermine athlete performance beyond visible symptoms.
Nasal breathing cuts the oxygen cost of holding your pace.
Allergies suppress HRV over days through sleep disruption, not acute stress response.
Most elite athletes with allergic rhinitis never get treated for it.
Untreated nasal allergies cost endurance athletes up to twenty percent of their aerobic capacity.
Allergen sensitization primes airways to overreact during intense exercise.