Will the air quality affect my run?

Question

I'm form the Chicago area and will be running a half marathon in southern California in a couple of weeks.I'm starting to hear about"bad air quality". Will it make that big of a difference in my performance?Will it cause me to run slower?

Answer 1

It may lead to shortness of breath and similar problems if the pollution is quite thick.

California is not as bad as it was in the 70's.

http://www.stuffintheair.com/air-polluti...

Shows some of the improvements over recent decades.

Answer 2

Im not a 100% sure if while you are on the run you will feel the immediate affect mainly because down in southern cali the air is pretty good. But the the long scheme of things if you keep on running in it, it will definatly affect your lungs.

Answer 3

I also live in Northern California and the air quality does affect how you run. I ran the Disneyland Half last year and it wasn't bad at all. I didn't really notice a difference from running in the Bay Area. However when I am running and it is a poor air quality day I can feel it when I breathe.

I'm assuming the Chicago air is not as poor as the LA air but not as great as an island in the bahamas. You'll most likely be fine especially since the run is probably in the morning. If it was in the peak of the day the mixture of the heat and air could pose a problem. I wouldn't stress about it.

If you do feel that your breathing is too labored then don't be afraid to stop and take a break or stop all together. Your health is the most important thing. They should have aide stations every couple miles. If you are running the Disneyland Half then you'll love it. The Disney Characters come out and cheer you on and it's a fun course. Enjoy it.

I keep a runners blog if you are interested. (see below) It usually has some good tips and fun stories. Hope that helps.

Answer 4

I live in Northern California and all the wildfires are pissing me off. The crappy air quality is awful. I think it would affect your performance since your not use to the pollution and soot levels. You may or may not have a hard time breathing. Check the website below. You may need to click homepage once you click the site. The link is set for my area.

http://www.airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=a...