I give blood regularly, usually whole blood and usually feel fine the next day. Last friday I gave using the apheresis method, thats where they just take the platelets, red and white cells and plasma and return the rest. They will only let you donate every 120 days vs 60 days for whole blood. Anyway, I rode the next day, doing a standard 30 mile route and was 2 mph slower than normal and sucked!!! on the hills. I rode last night and am still dragging ass. Is the blood donation the reason I have lost so much energy and how long should this last? Feels like I haven't been on the bike for a month.

I have been donating regularly since the '80s, and also riding a weekly 10 mile time trial through the summer, so I have a fair bit of experience on the effects of whole blood donation. IME, donating on the day of a time trial costs about 40 seconds in a 25-26 minute TT. The next week, it's about 15 seconds. By the 3rd week, there's probably a bit of a loss, but not much. I normally donate on Monday and ride on Thursday, and that seems like about a 20 second penalty. The day I donate and for a few days after, I certainly can feel it. I also find that my hematocrit drifts down through the summer, and sometimes am too low to make an 8 week donation by the time the fall comes around. I've never done your type of donation, but your experience certainly doesn't surprise me.

I give blood regularly, usually whole blood and usually feel fine the next day. Last friday I gave using the apheresis method, thats where they just take the platelets, red and white cells and plasma and return the rest. They will only let you donate every 120 days vs 60 days for whole blood. Anyway, I rode the next day, doing a standard 30 mile route and was 2 mph slower than normal and sucked!!! on the hills. I rode last night and am still dragging ass. Is the blood donation the reason I have lost so much energy and how long should this last? Feels like I haven't been on the bike for a month.

I don't donate during the summer race season for that exact reason. My blood type isn't rare so I don't feel overly guilty...donating is a noble gesture, just not good for performance at any level in the short term. you can help a bit by eating a bit more food higher in iron, but the effects may not be measurable on the bike. it may help you get out of bed a bit mor easily though..

thanks for the reminder! I can donate now that its the off season.
I think it really just comes down to lower O2 leves in the blood.

tell all your buddies racing is for a while go bleed!

my doc tells me 2 weeks post donation i shouldn't notice any diffrence.

but remember... that also affects your training schedule...

tell all your buddies racing is for a while go bleed!

Could you translate this into English? :)

Could you translate this into English? :)

oh boo fuc#ing hoo.
i forgot 2 comas and a couple letters

it should read for you crybabies:

tell all your friends, racing isn't for a while, go bleed.

you couldn't piece that one together?

tell all your friends, racing isn't for a while, go bleed.


Huh?...

While you're at it, ask 'em to save a bag or two of your blood so that when racing season comes, you'll be ready to ... I mean. Nevermind.

:)

Huh?...

its december... unless you've got a little euro cross for you or live in AZ you've got some time before race season starts. Thus, you can go bleed at a blood donation station.

i'm going to start banging my head on the damm keyboard

Look in the archives in the medical section on velonews. The doctor who writes the medical column covered blood donation in gorey detail last year.

Basically the gist of it was if you are making your living off cycling it was going to affect you out to at least a month and you probably shouldn't ever be making a donation during the season.

For everyone else the effect was negligible and even a day or two shouldn't be showing up as a significant problem. If it is effecting you it could be something else going on.