I've got back on the road running after about a month of not doing so. Just today, I pushed myself to a 4.5km run with a pace of 5:10min/km after only 2 separate runs. But when I got back home, to my horror, I am itching all over my body! On top of that, hives formed up on both my thighs, underarms and glutes. From a quick search, here's the likely cause of the itch:
Itchy skin usually occurs during exercise performed after a long period of inactivity. The itching is not on the skin, it's inside the actual limbs. There are millions of tiny capillaries and arteries inside our muscles which expand rapidly due to the demand for more blood that is brought on by exercise. When fit, these capillaries remain open allowing maximum blood passage, but when unfit and inactive they tend to collapse, allowing only minimal blood passage (which is sufficient for a sedentary person however). The rapid expansion of these vessels causes adjacent nerves to send impulses back to the brain which are interpreted as an itch. That's why after a few sessions the sensation tends to go away. Just another indication of increasing fitness levels
The question I have is, how do I overcome this immediately? Also, anyone experience the same thing before? Trying not to self-mutilate myself through scratching is driving me insane and if possible, I do not want to stop running.
