The PowerBreathe contraption

[peliroja]

I bought one ages ago and have just started to use it (second day of the regime today). It's a pretty horrible sensation sucking through the machine; something akin to a very severe asthma attack.

I have asthma which gets quite bad in summer due to the pollen and other airborne gunk. It's also exercise-induced, which can get tricky when my legs want to go, but lungs say otherwise. 

I am doing 2 x 15 minute sessions a day on low resistance. Has anyone else any experience of these?

[peliroja]

Well, I don't want to speak too soon, but I took my peak flow last night after just four sessions and there was an improvement!

The downside is that the session takes 30 minutes out of your day, it's very tough going, and I didn't have time to do it this morning. 

[annie]

I haven't but I know a man who has and has noticed some improvement after a relatively short space of time.

[clarion]

I cannot for one moment imagine why anyone would want to experience the lack of oxygen that you get with asthma!

It's generally heavily not recommended that asthmatics use these devices, though I guess you know what you're doing.

I suppose it may improve your lung capacity and efficiency over time, but I can't say that my years of struggling along through attacks has helped me much in the times in between. 

[Sergeant Pluck]

It's generally heavily not recommended that asthmatics use these devices, though I guess you know what you're doing.

Oh, I dunno:

http://www.powerbreathe.com/medical.html#IMTAsthma

I guess it is probably best done after consulting your respiratory physician.

[peliroja]

My asthma nurse was the person to recommend this to me, in fact.

[ian]

It's probably worth mentioning that these kinds of techniques may be OK as an adjunct to formal pharmaceutical therapy and shouldn't replace it. If the underlying airway inflammation remains untreated, breathing exercises may simply mask this (by making it easier to breathe against the resistance). The end result will be fibrosis and permanent lung damage.

Probably obvious, but make sure the asthma is well controlled first. After that any kind of strengthening exercise (or good old fashioned aerobic exercise) will probably be a Good Thing.

[Greenbank]

Probably obvious, but make sure the asthma is well controlled first. After that any kind of strengthening exercise (or good old fashioned aerobic exercise) will probably be a Good Thing.

When I was diagnosed with asthma in my early teens the doctor recommended swimming. As well as being a good form of aerobic exercise, it also helps enlarge the chest cavity (just look at the body shape of professional swimmers) which helps increase lung capacity.