Beta Blockers

I haven't taken them,but I have prescribed them.Some people have very little negative effects from them and some people have decreased athletic performance.Since they slow the heart and lower blood pressure they could be causing the arm fatigue you are experiencing.See how you do when you are able to train more regularly.

Thyroid can be a big problem. Is it a lack of Iodine or too much Iodine. Lugols Solution of Iodine helps with control of thyroid problems in some cases. A drop or two a day. Don't use the regular Iodine.

I've been on beta blockers before, and they really impacted my training. It was difficult to get my HR over 120 or so, and I always felt heavy and sluggish in the water. Last year I was on them for a while after a lone atrial fibrillation incident. One evening workout featured several 200s on 2:40 or so, and I was holding 2:18 - 20. I had a day trip on business the next day, ... and forgot to take my meds. But got home in time for practice. We again did 200s on 2:40, and I descended to 2:08, and felt a lot better, and about the same effort. I "worked" with my doctor, so now I'm off the beta blocker. I do take lisinopril for some high BP, but I've never had a problem with it. Your mileage may vary, but always work with your doctor.

Might consider the new cardio-selective beta blocker, Bystolic. Fewer side effects, better tolerated. A swimming buddy of mine was/is on Bystolic. It helped him immensely. He even talked to the company about a testemonial. He swore up and down about how he felt it allowed him to get back swimming.

I've been on beta blockers twice in my life for different reasons. I really didn't like the way they made me feel (although it is hard to get nervous when you are on a high enough dose, that had some advantages when I was a med student and being terrorized on rounds). I have been very happy on lisinopril, too. There are all kinds of reasons why one regimen may be better for you than another so you really have to work with your doctor on this. Mine was very accommodating about working around my concerns. There have been several recent reviews about the treatment of hypertension in athletes that might be helpful and relevant including: Phys Sportsmed. 2010 Apr;38(1):37-44. Treatment of hypertension in athletes: an evidence-based review. Asplund C. individualized treatment for you is what counts.

I have a teammate who is on beta blockers, and he has the same problem--they limit his maximum heart rate, which affects how much effort he can give. In an earlier thread on treatment for hypertension, lisinopril seemed to emerge as the favorite of the swimmers who responded to my question about which drug least impacts swimming negatively. Perhaps your doctor already tried this one, but if not, you might want to see if it works for you. It's an ACE inhibitor as opposed to a beta blocker. The latter work, I am pretty sure, by limiting the impact of adrenline (keeping you from getting too excited.) I am not sure exactly what mechanism ACE inhibitors use, but they don't, apparently, slow you down. Interestingly, lisinopril like other ACE inhibitors, is derived from the venom of the jararaca, a Brazilian pit viper (from Wikipedia). If you are wondering who your heart's best buddy is, it is this fellow: biology.uta.edu/.../DSC02784op.JPG Here's an interesting article on snake venom and blood pressure meds: www.fasebj.org/.../421e Excerpt: Workers in the banana plantations of southwestern Brazil were known to collapse suddenly after being bitten by a pit viper due to a drastic drop in blood pressure. Curious about what exactly this venom does to the body, biochemist Mauricio Rocha e Silva of a Brazilian research institute made extracts of the venom and began to study their effects in dogs and guinea pigs. In the mid 1960s, one of Silva's postdoctoral students, Sergio Ferreira, traveled to London to work in the lab of pharmacologist...

Might consider the new cardio-selective beta blocker, Bystolic. Fewer side effects, better tolerated.

Hi, I'v been on BP meds at a low dosage for about 9 years & no noticeble drop other than me getting older.

I have had very good luck with an angiotensin II receptor blocker, namely, Diovan, which I have been on for the last 7-8 years. I've had no noticeable side effects, and my BP has been better controlled than during the 20 years previously that I was on a beta blocker. The beta blocker didn't interfere with my exercising, but it had other undesirable side effects that I simply learned to live with. Other drugs I tried (and I think I must have tried them all, individually and in combination) left me feeling totally enervated. Obviously, everybody's different; my point, really, is that if you're unhappy with your current regimen, ask your doc if there isn't something else you can try. There are lots of different classes of BP meds out there. My doc was always very good about giving me free samples to try before committing to a paid prescription.

I have taken a beta blocker for 5 years, since having a heart attack (which was treated quickly, with no muscle damage). I certainly notice a difference in the water; my pulse won't go over 150, and I have experienced frustration about it. But my blood pressure has never been an issue; my reason for taking the medicine is to keep my heart from working too hard. I have learned to live with it; it's made me focus on form to a greater degree and to seek technical improvements in an attempt to go faster.