Jogging - Ears plugged

sarah44254

I just got home from jogging about 4 miles. Around 10 minutes in my ears always start to plug up, and it hurts! I can still feel it a little bit now that I am home and sitting again. I don't have a cold. I might have allergies?

Is there some kind of breathing technique I can jog with to avoid this? Am I just sick and that is why?

If anyone has ideas please share. I'd love to go jogging without this pain

00trayn

This happens to me doing cardio too! I thought I was just crazy... lol. I haven't had a cold or anything either when it happens, it's hard to hear what my trainer is telling me when my ears get plugged up from the cardio warmup! Lolllllll

I'd love to hear what people have to say...

jlewis2896

This is interesting! I've never had this problem myself, I just googled 'ear pain while jogging' and came up with this:

Some joggers experience ear pain due to heavy breathing through nose with mouth closed. It causes larger air space between the pharynx and nose causing a temporary block of Eustachian tubes.

(from this site) http://www.helium.com/items/858784-ear-pain-causes

Not sure if this might be your problem? I've actually heard that it's better to nose-breathe while jogging because it better oxygenates your body....

Vewwwwy intewesting...

jlewis2896

Oh, also got this:



Rod_Moser_PA_PhD responded:
I have no way of determining SPECIFICALLY why YOUR ears may be hurting (since I can't examine you), but I can give a two possibilities....

1. Some ears are very sensitive to cold. Have you tried covering your ears when you jog to see if keeping them warmer would help?

2. Some people experience Exercise-Induced Eustachian Tube Dysfunction…

Exercise increases blood supply to all parts of the body. Along with this increased proliferation of blood, comes tissue engorgement...this is why your skin becomes red or flushed. When the tissue engorgement is around your eustachian tubes -- those tiny ventilation tubes that run from your middle ear space (the area on the other side of your eardrum) to the back of your throat -- it may cause the tubes to malfunction.

If the eustachian tubes clog, your ears may feel full / stuffy, and your hearing could be a bit muffled, like they need to "pop". If the pressure is high enough, the ears can be painful. If the e-tubes lock in the "open" position (they are normally closed and only open briefly when we swallow), you may hear your own voice or an echo.

As long as this exercise-induced eustachian tube dysfunction resolves after you cool down, there is no need to be concerned. Unfortunately, there may be little that you can do to prevent this from occurring, other than reducing the intensity of your exercise.
(From the Ear, Nose & Throat: Rod Moser, PA, PhD)

sarah44254

Nice finds! How distressing as the description of Exercise-Induced Eustachian Tube Dysfunction fits me perfectly. This pain happens occasionally even as I do my work-outs indoors.

Maybe as I get more fit, the work-outs will not be as 'intense' to my body and the pain will subside.

Thanks very much for finding this!

valeriedent2

There was an article on MSN a few weeks ago, on their new "fitbie" site, about 10 weird side effects of exercising and this was one of them.

Something about how your feet striking the ground/pavement causes a change in pressure in your inner ear, or something like that.

Apparently not uncommon, but not common, either.

00trayn

Wow, that description fits my problem exactly as well!! It's a bummer there isn't much I can do about it. Its not enough to scale back my workouts, I don't get as bad as actual ear pain. I'm happy I know what's really happening though. Thanks for posting that!