the pill and cycling performance

[alpinerabbit]

I once read it is performance enhancing - the only drug that is and that they can't put on the doping list, for ethical/discrimination reasons.

Basically it keeps you low-level pregnant, doesn't it? in certain countries where the gov't placed lots of emphasis on olympic medals, they would get the athletes pregnant shortly before important events, so they would be in the first weeks, only to have an abortion later. Sad but performance enhancing.

[OakLeaf]

According to this abstract, the IOC originally banned norethindrone NOT because it is performance enhancing in itself, but because some drug testing labs couldn't distinguish it from nandrolone, an anabolic steroid.

Interestingly, the Snopes entry on abortion doping suggests that it's the abortion, not the initial pregnancy, that is supposed to be performance enhancing. (Now, I consider Snopes only marginally more reliable than the rumors it's supposed to debunk, but FWIW, she lists that one as "indeterminate.")

I've never taken it myself, so can't add anything personal.

[ny biker]

It caused me to retain water, which made my legs feel heavy and swollen and left me constantly worried about whether I would be able to prevent dehydration (or hyponatremia) during rides. It also made me gain weight, caused frequent migraines and generally turned me into an angry *****. And this was a low-level dose that I took to fix a problem with too-frequent periods. After 4 months I stopped taking it and it was several months after that before the migraines subsided.

Your mileage may vary...

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I've never had any problems, weight gain, or side effects at all from being on the pill years at a time.

[redrhodie]

I've been on it for years, and I remember the first 6 months being kind of rough (mostly due to moodiness), but it got much better. Lighter, painless periods are a plus, so is clear skin and the ability to anticipate the start of my period within a few hours.

Since I didn't start riding until I'd already been accustomed to it, I can't give info about how it will effect your ride. It often takes some getting used to, but once you adjust, it's definitely got its perks.

[Becky]

I've never noticed much of an effect on my cycling when I'm on the right pill. It took me 3 tries to find one that didn't make me insanely naseous or have a bunch of sexual side effects.

If you decide to start the pill, keep a close tab on any side effects that you're having. This will help a good doc figure out what the right pill is for you. It's definitely a trial and error process!

[aicabsolut]

No impact on performance other than it makes me more comfortable at that time of the month, and it helps me control hormonal headaches. The headaches, especially migraines, certainly have a negative impact on any physical activity. I take it more for those and other benefits than I do for birth control, so all in all, they make my quality of life a bit better, and that is better for my cycling.