Can I exercise during illness
Cold? The flu? Allergies? Most people confuse a cold with the flu. Meanwhile, these are two different diseases. Influenza is caused by viruses called coronaviruses and rhinoviruses. There are more than 200 different types of coronaviruses and rhinoviruses. If one of them infected you, your immune system will create a lifetime of immunity to it (this is why the same virus can't infect you twice). However, you should be wary of other viruses that you have not yet gotten over; and there are enough of them that will last you for the rest of your life.
Flu, as you may have realized from your own experience, is a fairly serious disease, since it is usually accompanied by painful sensations in various parts of the body and an increase in temperature. Therefore, your immune system is put to a more severe test than with a common cold. During this period, fitness classes can not only harm muscle growth, but also harm health in General. Don't forget that training can help build muscle mass, lose body fat, and feel good, but it is also a catabolic factor. In order to get out of the state of catabolism caused by training, and go into a state of anabolism, leading to muscle growth, the body must be healthy.
Thus, if you are infected with the flu, your body is already fighting the catabolic condition caused by the virus of this disease. In this case, training loads can only add catabolism, which, in turn, will negatively affect the ability of the immune system to resist the virus, and you will feel even worse. Therefore, if you have the flu, you can't do any training. Instead, focus on proper nutrition and drink plenty of fluids (water and electrolyte-replacement drinks, this will help avoid dehydration). As soon as the flu is completely gone, you can gradually start training with weights, but only by reducing the weight and not doing failure repetitions. Don't force yourself to train hard in the first week. In the next week, repeat what you did in the previous week, but you can already come close to failure repetitions. In the third week, you can already train according to the usual scheme.
If you have a cold and it is mild (you know what a mild cold is when the symptoms are a runny nose and a slight cough), you can continue to train, but not to the point of complete failure, and at a reduced weight of up to 75 percent. Divide the training weight by 4, and this will be the value by which you should reduce your training weights. At the same time, if the cold virus has hit you to the point where you feel ill, your whole body aches, your throat is inflamed, and you have a headache, it is best to stop training until these symptoms disappear. When the disease passes, just follow the start program described above and designed for training after the disease. Remember that we do not want your immune system to fight the virus against the background of even greater catabolic activity, so during this period, intensive training should be excluded.
If your illness is not a cold or flu, then consult your doctor.
Now, after we've looked at how the flu or cold can disrupt our plans for progress, let's see how we can protect ourselves from these disgusting viruses that put us at risk during the cold season or at other times of the year.
It is known that the cold and flu season usually falls in the winter months (although there are outbreaks at other times of the year), and do not forget, it was you who allowed the virus to enter your body. Therefore, it is logical to provide double protection with the following actions.
Protect your body from the virus
Keep in mind that the cold virus is spread through human contact and can enter your body through your mouth, eyes, and nose. Viruses remain active for up to three hours, and during this time, you need to do the following:
- do not touch your face with your hands.
- often wash your hands with antibacterial soap throughout the day (especially immediately after a workout in the gym).
Keep your immune system in good condition at all times
Don't forget that excessive exercise, poor nutrition, and lack of sleep are catabolic factors. Beware of overtraining, stick to a properly balanced diet, avoid processed foods: they contain a large amount of saturated fat; do not eat high-grade flour and refined sugar, as these products contribute to reducing the effectiveness of the immune system.
Remember about vitamin complexes!
Sleep at least 7-9 hours a day (depending on your individual needs)
Stay healthy and follow the above recommendations, and if, nevertheless, the disease overtakes you, then, as the former Mr. Olympia – Lee Haney said: "Do not whip a tired horse." Rest until you get better! Otherwise, the consequences can be very serious, and it will put you out of action for quite a long period of time.
