This is especially common in cold weather.
This article explains why you may cough after exercise and why its more common when yourun in the cold.
It also covers remedies for these coughing attacks and tips on when to seek medical help for your cough.
Val Thoermer/EyeEm/Getty Images
Val Thoermer/EyeEm/Getty Images
What Causes You to Cough After Running?
One of the most common causes of coughing after running isexercise-inducedbronchoconstrictionor EIB.
If you have EIB, you might experience coughing orwheezingafter running.
Some people have additional symptoms likechest tightnessor burning lungs.
Symptoms typically begin five to 20 minutes into exercise and last an hour.
Healthcare providers believe that the increased breathing rate and mouth breathing during exercises like running can irritate the airways.
That leads to the symptoms of EIB.
The symptoms are often worse during cold weather since cold, dry air itself can irritate the airways.
In addition to EIB, running can also causeexercise-inducedrhinitis, or nasal irritation.
This can lead to post-nasal drip, which might make you cough.
Exercise is important to health, especially for people with asthma.
Lifestyle Changes
Simple changes to your workout routine can help you stop coughing after your runs.
This is particularly important if you haveasthma.
Summary
Coughing after running is common, even for people who are fit and healthy.
This is due to EIB, a condition in which exercise causes the airways to become irritated.
Cold air can make that irritation worse.
Exercising indoors, wearing a scarf over your face, and warming up properly can reduce symptoms of EIB.
Frequently Asked Questions
Exercise-induced asthma usually resolves within an hour of a cough starting.
Many runners breathe through their mouths, resulting in cold, dry air reaching the lungs.
That can cause the lungs to constrict, which can make you cough or wheeze.
Adjusting your exercise routine can help prevent this.
Coughing after you go for a run is common, but occasionally it’s a real cause for worry.
Even fit and healthy people may have a fit of coughing after they exercise.
In fact, a recognized symptom of EIB is feeling out of shape when you’re actually very fit.
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Johns Hopkin Medicine.Asthma and Exercise.
American Lung Association.Weather and your lungs.
2018;8(1):20. doi: 10.1186/s13601-018-0208-9
