Asthma shouldn't keep you from daily activities or even from strenuous exercise. In fact, activity helps your lungs in the long run. Even if exercise is your asthma trigger, you can learn ways to exercise by changing your environment or by using an inhaled medicine, such as albuterol, immediately before exercising. If someone like track star Jackie Joyner-Kersee — who has asthma — can win Olympic gold medals, you can pursue whatever level of activity you want.

Many people who have asthma are most likely to have their symptoms triggered if they are breathing cold air. Some simple strategies may help to reduce this trigger: consider indoor exercise if the weather is very cool, wear a scarf or facemask that can help you warm the air you are breathing, or consider swimming in a heated pool. Breathing through your nose will allow warming of air as you inhale it, so exercise that allows this more "gentle" breathing may also be less likely to trigger symptoms, compared with heavy exercise that requires "mouth breathing" or panting.

Keep in mind, though, that athletes who underestimate their asthma can get into serious trouble if they don't have their condition under control or don't pay attention to the warning signs. Play it safe — before you start a new exercise plan, talk it over with a health care professional.