Running and GERD (acid reflux) - Anyone constantly pestered with this? How do you cope?

I take ranitidine daily

Tums

Diet

I used to have this, persisted for about 4 months.

Tea made it worse so cut back on it.

Eating carrots helped.

When I did my running in the evening 2 hours after dinner I got this regularly. Now I run in the day 3-4 hours after breakfast I never do.

runsz wrote:

I have pretty annoying GERD issues and find it extremely aggravating on most days to deal with and even more annoying to deal with when im racing. How do you cope, what works for you? I've noticed that mainting good posture puts pressure on my core which forces acid up my throat :(.. Thoughts? I thought about doing core exercises but i dont think stengthining my stomach muscles would help much.

Watching caffeine on race or workout days has worked for me, as well as waiting 2.5 to 3 hours after breakfast to run....and simplifying breakfast on those days: a couple rolls, banana, Gatorade. The night before something hard in the morning (err, a race or workout I mean), I also avoid things like pizza and salads, which take a while to digest and cause other issues.

And last but most important: Pepcid Complete. They're relatively expensive at about .50 per pill but so worth it.

Ive had this recurr for a few days after a particularly stodgy carb dense meal.

In short; get in to the routine of having some yoghurt everyday.

In length; From what i read, too many carbs can sit in your stomach, releasing gases that create a lot of pressure, force your sphincter (the one in the stomach) open and cause heartburn. Thus you need to 'rebalance' your stomach, with all the bioactive stuff.

Certain gels cause it. Avoid them.

I've had on and off issues the last few years

I had to mostly stop drinking tea and coffee (7+/week -> 1/week), avoid acidic foods right before bed (pasta w/ tomato sauce), avoid spicy foods (acidic), be extra careful on hard days. I also started drinking a glass of water in the mornings with organic/raw apple cider vinegar in it.

Would be nice to hear more peoples opinions, I haven't heard of the carb thing but i will keep it in mind.

I've had to take off 25 days from running in the last year because of this, sometimes involving throwing up, sometimes just spending the entire day/multiple days feeling like i could throw up at any instant, often have enough stomach pain to make it really hard to concentrate on work. Not something i generally feel every day but will just hit me once every/every other month for a few days. Generally cut back on eating as a result(during) and lose a few pounds off my 148 6'4" frame. Has really messed up some training cycles

- SJD

I avoid eating three hours before going to bed if possible. Lets the food get moved through the system and takes pressure off of the LES

Liquid. Mint. Extract. Mix a few drops into some water daily or twice if need be. Other than that - low carb diets, whole 30's, paleo, and those types of diets will eliminate it. Change your lifestyle. Or take a pill every day that you'll slowly acclimatize to until you have to take ever increasing doses and riskier classes of meds until one days it's too much to overcome.

Anyone know how long it takes GERD to go away on average?

Also, can biking take GERD longer to go away?

Bob Schul country wrote:

I take ranitidine daily

Man, I hope you're okay. Ranitidine is no good.

To the guy who bumped the thread. I and fit, healthy, run a lot, and have a very clean diet, but will occasionally deal with bouts of acid reflux if I have the wrong food/wine combo. It doesn't have to be unhealthy or greasy. For instance, my last bout came after an evening when I made homemade tomato sauce over penne and had two glasses of red wine. I had run long that day and I think the combo just did me in. Lasted about 3 days and finally went away.

I have found that Nexium is extremely effective if used under a physician's care. I wouldn't take it for more than a 14-day cycle unless you see a GI specialist, but it really helps keep me in check.

Avoid alcohol, coffee, tea, pickles greasy foods, nuts, chocolate, wheat and all meds. Never run on a full stomach- ever... Don't overeat the night before shard workout. Belly breathe

I sure am... in fact I’m getting an endoscopy tomorrow at 11am

It has been a terror for me since 2008.

I used to have a little bag packed just in case I decided that it hurt enough to go to the ER

I never have gone but there have been many nights I’ve sat up all night just barely keeping from throwing up.

I’m training hard again and I’m afraid there is a connection

I hope not and my gastro doc said there was no connection.. I was in agony from September 25th through the 30th and again from the 15th of October to the 18th.

Yet, I can still eat and motion ( running or walking) actually reduces the pain.

My voice was hoarse for days.. well you know ..

It’s embarrassing but I couldn’t help but get it checked out. It’s been a heck of a year.: cancer then this.

There is a connection with anxiety no doubt and this has been a year for that..it’s good to get it checked out though particularly when you feel like something hot as fire is ready to rip out from beneath breastbone.. good luck

Agree with above and avoid mint.

Oh and avoid kombucha. They correlation with kombucha and stomach ulcers is INSANE

Get checked for hiatal hernia. Learn to release it yourself with a pressure point.

I've had chronic reflux for years too - I avoided seeing a specialist for as long as possible, but eventually caved and went. Had an endoscopy, and they had me take omeprazole for a few months, then did another endoscopy. Daily omeprazole cleared all the inflammation and pain up for me, so have had to take it since. Completely life changing though, pretty much never feel reflux anymore, unless I forget to take it. For me it's definitely linked with stress and anxiety. Basically I wish I'd sought treatment earlier (leaving it untreated can cause other issues later on). Good luck with your endoscopy tomorrow

I also take omeprazole from time to time when mine flares up and this seems to be the only thing that can calm the imflammation. Peppermint tea, bucsopan, yoghurt etc... doesn't seem to do anything.

I do all of my morning runs on an empty stomach and when I have a hard training session in the evening I have a very light lunch. Coffee seems to trigger it, possibly dark chocolate as well which I eat a lot of.