What does ASTHMA feel like??

Note: I am not a doctor. 

My .02 - I have asthma and what you're describing sounds a lot like what happens to me if I don't use my inhaler before I exercise. It's hard to take a deep breath and your chest can feel tight. Sometimes I will have small coughing fits afterwards where it feels like there's something in your chest that you have to get out (mostly in the winter). 

"Not being conditioned enough" doesn't feel the same way at all. When I first started getting back into running and I was totally out of shape, it was a much different feeling than if I had forgotten to take a puff of my inhaler before going out for a run. Not being conditioned would lead to breathing heavier, not not being able to take in a full breath. Did that make any sense at all?

All that said, I think it's a good idea to see your doc

jsnowash,  I'll tell you what I think, but you should go see a Doctor to ask about that.  But they'll almost always give you an inhalor and send you away.

My .02, it could be Exercise and Allergy Induced Asthma.  I had problems with it all through high school in Maryland (near PA) but when I got to college in South Carolina, I didn't have it anymore.  Haven't had a problem since I moved out of MD really.

If that's not enough proof for you, I had a Marine in my Company who used to used to max the PFT (running <17 min 3 miles).  When he moved from CA to SC , he had an asthma attack during a run at Drill instructor School and found out he has allergies to whatever's in SC.

One more, I was walking into the Field Hospital in the field in the middle of Spain to get some Vitamin M (Motrin) and there was a kid heaving while sitting in a chair.  I asked him what was wrong and he said he couldn't breathe.  I got the docs and they took care of him and later found out he was "allergic to Spain."  When he got home, he was fine and served in Iraq twice after that.

I'm not saying that's definitely what's up with you, but if it's seasonal or if you're running somewhere different than you normally used to, or if the pool changed brands of chlorine, you may have some type of allergy.  Again, see a doctor. 

Air Quality Alert warning today in Philadelphia.   Does that stretch to Wallingford?  I've had something similar recently and am starting to wonder if it's the air....

Brian 

Yep. I got diagnosed with EIB (Btw, that's the "new" term, exercised induced bronchospasm, I guess asthma just didn't have enough syllables) last year. Asymptomatic most of the time, but in very intense heat (What am I doing in Phoenix again?) I get the feeling like I can't quite breathe deep, and I have a non productive cough after exercise.

I'm on a daily pill (That I'm pretty convinced isn't really doing a danged thing) and a pre exercise inhaler (Which I am convinced is doing EVERYthing.)

See a doc, especially since I never had any chest pain associated with it.

John

Mild asthma does go away on its own after a while, at least for me, just by lowering my intensity of exercise. 

Asthma is the contracting and narrowing of your air passage, resulting in lack of oxygen.  There were times that I had a mild asthma (allergy-triggered) and I don't have my inhaler with me.  I would sit down, relax, try to deep breathe in a rhythmic manner, almost like meditation, and it would go away. 

Lack of fitness also contributed to my exercise-induce asthma.  When I first started running, 13 min/mile was my limit.  Tried to run faster and I would be wheezing.  Took me a few years to get up to my current speed which is ~10 min/mile. 

Cold also triggers asthma.  Now that I have lived in New England for many years, I have developed the tolerance of being able to run at freezing temperature on a calm day.  But can't take it on the bike at 40°-ish or below, due to the wind chill effect.