Blood donation before a big ride?

[Rumblefish]

And to help your (our) iron count, don't forget to eat raisins and/or green leafy vegetables.

I love spinach, and it's my best friend before donation time.....I skimped on it the one time and my iron was too low and was banned from donating for 3 months like Enzed said they do to you. (I was super disappointed too I seem to get a bizarre pleasure out of donating )

It's great to hear about all of you who donate as well!

[Andrea]

The woman I spoke with assured me that I should be fine provided I drink plenty of fluids before the donation and afterwards, and that it's only recommended not to lift heavy things.

She's got that incredibly backwards! By donating blood, you are removing red blood cells (duh, I know), which severely limits the body's ability to transport oxygen. Your VO2 max (amount of oxygen your body can use) will be lower, as well as your lactate threshold (more likely to be a limiting factor, especially if there are hills or a headwind involved). Why do you think that blood doping is rampant? You ADD red blood cells, and you get increased performance... it works both ways!

As for lifting heavy things, the worst that could happen is some bruising. Your ability to perform one or two repetitions of a heavy lift would not, physiologically speaking, be affected by blood loss.

[jobob]

Reading this thread makes me feel so guilty.

I am a *terrible* bleeder (sounds odd, but it's true). They usually have a heck of a time finding a vein - they usually end up poking both arms - and even then, I have to squeeze the tennis ball or whatever for dear life to get the bag to fill up.

The last time I donated, at our company's blood drive almost a year ago, I explained to the tech how it's sometimes hard to find a vein and he called over the nurse, explaining, "she's great at this". Well... several pokes later she acknowleged I was a challenge. And since I was one of the last appointments, they had to stay late because I took so doggone long to fill up the bag.

So I haven't participated in our company's blood drive since then. Oh, but I should! One thing the nurse suggested to me was that I drink lots of water several days beforehand.

OK, you folks have motivated me.