I have had problems with my thyroid on and off now for 18 years. It has vacillated between being hyper or hypo. My first question to you is - Is your hyperthyroidism under control? Are you being treated for this?
I've been told that exercise can affect thyroid function. Keep tabs on your heart rate. I do this by wearing a heart rate monitor when I swim. If you are concerned about your intensity, the heart rate monitor is a great tool for letting you know when you are pushing it too hard.
If you have hyperthyroidism, its probably not going to feel real good to swim hard. I don't think you will harm yourself, but you certainly will not help things, either.
It depends somewhat on how severe the hyperthyroidism is. Most people that are thyrotoxic (which is what we call it when you are affected by hyperthyroidism) feel fatigued and dragged out. Their heart is racing, even if they're sitting still. What is happening is that your metabolism is being whipped to an inappropriately high level.
What will swimming do for that? Not sure, but most times when you're thyrotoxic your stamina is poor. Sorry to say, but this is a situation where medical treatment is highly effective, and there isn't a non-medical alternative. I hope you find an endocrinologist you trust.
Thanks. Nice to hear from your experience!
My TSH dropped from 0.3 uIU/mL in the first test to 0.05 uIU/mL in the second. I am still under diagnosis without medication and will have another blood test after two-month diet without seafood.
You guys are right, my endurance is poor and sometimes my heart beats so fast that I have to rest between exercises. I'd better not to push myself hard.
What is the hyperthyroidism stemming from? Continue having it investigated.
For me, the hyper thyroid is from Grave's disease. Could not figure out why my strength and stamina was deteriorating. My resting heart rate was 80 bpm. It was ruining my body. I had it treated and now everything is OK. My resting heart rate while I type this is 44.
Really keep an eye on this. I had a thyroid storm back in early 2004. Know what your heart rate is at rest and watch for any changes. I had to be put on beta blockers to get things under control.
I should revise my earlier statemet: I think you could potentially do some harm if you were to swim hard. Your TSH isn't real bad, but when you are thyrotoxic, you are vulnerable to heart rhythm distubances that could be triggered by vigorous exercise.
Bottom line: take it easy, listen to your body, and keep monitoring your lab tests. One final detail: the blood tests for thyroid disease are very accurate.
