birth control and performace

Did you mean "feral"?

I think it's very individual. I've had friends who have no problems but for me it was a negative effect and I tried a few different kinds. I just wouldn't feel as good on my good days and in general felt a little more tired. By about two weeks after going off it I'd feel good again. However their was one positive effect- not getting pregnant so if that's what you need then just take it.

stinky pete wrote:

Does birth control hinder, improve, or have no effect on femal performance in distance events?

Birth control greatly helps your performance in distance events. Have you ever seen a great runner when they are 8 months pregnant? They can't run very fast, that's for sure. The best birth control is abstinence, but coitus interruptus is also good. However I prefer to jack in your box.

I think it made my performances suffer. Once I started taking bc, my running went downhill.

Honestly, if you find the right kind, you shouldn't see any effect, positive or negative. People who report bad side effects really need to try a different formulation (estrogen vs. progestin content).

So HELP! Which BC pills are good for runners? I have been on Ortho-Tri-Cyclen, and it was okay for a while, but now that I'm in my forties it had a few unpleasant side effects (mostly breakthrough bleeding in the third week). So my doctor recommended Yasmin, and it was AWFUL! I won't give gory details, but if you take the worst effects of your cycle and magnify it by 10, you might be close to what I experienced on Yasmin. Then my niece told me her doctor wouldn't put her on Yasmin because it's bad for runners because it dehydrates you.

Any advice would be helpful, especially from women in their 40's ...

Getting old SUX!!!

Experimenting wrote:

So HELP! Which BC pills are good for runners? I have been on Ortho-Tri-Cyclen, and it was okay for a while, but now that I'm in my forties it had a few unpleasant side effects (mostly breakthrough bleeding in the third week). So my doctor recommended Yasmin, and it was AWFUL! I won't give gory details, but if you take the worst effects of your cycle and magnify it by 10, you might be close to what I experienced on Yasmin. Then my niece told me her doctor wouldn't put her on Yasmin because it's bad for runners because it dehydrates you.

Any advice would be helpful, especially from women in their 40's ...

Getting old SUX!!!

Yasmin was banned by WADA because of the diuretic it contains, I think it's been taken off the list now.

Experimenting wrote:

So HELP! Which BC pills are good for runners? I have been on Ortho-Tri-Cyclen, and it was okay for a while, but now that I'm in my forties it had a few unpleasant side effects (mostly breakthrough bleeding in the third week). So my doctor recommended Yasmin, and it was AWFUL! I won't give gory details, but if you take the worst effects of your cycle and magnify it by 10, you might be close to what I experienced on Yasmin. Then my niece told me her doctor wouldn't put her on Yasmin because it's bad for runners because it dehydrates you.

Any advice would be helpful, especially from women in their 40's ...

Getting old SUX!!!

I'm only in my 20's, but I hated Yasmin too. I felt like crap for several months before I gave up. I tried Ortho-Tricylen-Lo too, but it wasn't a great fit. I guess we have a lot in common there!

I have been on Zovia (generic for Demulen) for about two years now, and I love it. No side effects whatsoever. You might want to try that. (the dose looks like 1/35mcg)

anyone ever tried Alesse?!?

Condoms have negatively affected my performance in the past.

To make matters worse...

Drinking + condoms = DNF.

I just turned 39 and have been taking Lo-Ovral for about 15 years. I've never had any side effects from it. I did try taking a different pill (when my insurance stopped covering Lo-Ovral) and it was horrible. I would get extremely dizzy when running (not entirely unpleasant, but I did feel like I was going to fall). Also, my breasts hurt like hell and seemed to increast two sizes. I took the stuff for about 3 months to see if the side effects would diminish, but they didn't. I went back on Lo-Ovral and have been fine ever since.

Progestin only….Norethindrone, Brand name Micronor, Generic name Nora-Be

I am 41, 19 min 5ker. Demulen, Orthotryclene, and Seasonale all pushed my body fat up a couple points and my 5k time about a minute. Once I went on the progestin only, my times got back down.

It is a 28 day pill. That means, you take a dose everyday and don’t go off of them for 7 days like the other BC pills. What that meant for me is…no periods!! OK, yeah, I could be taking a risk here but when I am not on BC pills, I am regular so I do think my body is producing estrogen and I am safe from stress fractures and such. Just so nice to not have a period and worry about one coming around a big race. I have had several big races doomed due to cramps when I was not on BC pills.

Thanks for the advice. I find runners to be much more helpful than doctors (and I am NOT being sarcastic!).

I am what you might call an elite running and I take Loestrin (actually the generic version of it) I have been on it about 6 years...before that I was on Ortho-Tricyclen and I was extremely unhappy with those side effects. I have had no trouble with Loestrin, no weight gain, no slowness. In fact I think it has helped my performance since my period is much shorter and I have no cramps.