First Run in 2 Weeks and Allergies Did Me In Again

It is 2 hours after my workout stopped and I am still blowing my nose.  The last time I ran I hurt my calf and then I got a sinus infection from pollen overload.  The pollen count is still very high today, but it hasn't been as bad on me the last few days.  The pollen has gone from a light green to brown now and I thought it was a turning point.  I am fully vested in Claritin and hopefully my nose calms down soon.  It is driving me crazy.

So the workout... we did our normal 1 mile warmup, stretching, and then 4x100 striders.  All is well.  The actual workout is 5x1000 at 5k goal race pace with 200 recovery jog.

I ran the first one in 4:05 (6:34 mile pace) and the second in 4:20 (6:58).  That's a considerable drop.  The first felt pretty good even though my legs felt like they were burning up.  I didn't think too much of since I haven't run in 2 weeks.  The definitely felt like I slowed down on the second repeat even though I was trying to maintain the same pace.  My lungs were starting to feel asthmatic, though, by the end of that one.  I walked the recovery, got a little swig of water, and started the third 1000.  My lungs kept getting more constricted as I went and I stopped after 1 lap.  That was it.  I walked it off and got some cover under a tree.

Within 5 minutes, my nose was running like crazy and my eyes were itchy.  Done.  I popped one Claritin right away.  I biked home and ate some veggie lasagna and popped another Claritin.  Hopefully this goes away within the next hour, so I can sleep tonight.

Running Induced Asthma?

I have this happen to me frequently this time of year. I start feeling a shortness of breath even when my heart and the rest of my body aren't being taxed that much.

It doesn't take very long into my run to start feeling it either. Maybe 5 minutes or so. It makes me have to stop and walk and it's really annoying, because it throws off any pace that I had.

I can't tell if it has something to do with temperatures or allergens.

I know I have problems with Oak in late spring and early summer, but that usually makes my nose run and my eyes itchy. It doesn't affect my breathing.

If that was the case, I could take a pill a couple hours before running and just make sure that I drink more water. I can deal with that.

The symptoms seem to go away by the time my blood pressure, heart rate, and temperature are back to normal, which usually takes about 15-20 minutes after my runs.

Also, when it's real cold out (anything under 40 degrees), I may not get this feeling until after I am done running and I go indoors where heat is being used.

Does anyone up north or someone in Florida during this time of year experience a mild case of asthma during their runs? If so, is there anything I can do to prevent it or is there a quicker way to recover?

Thanks.