Should you exercise when you’re ill?

Should you exercise when you’re ill?

It’s a funny to write about this now as we’re approaching summer but I, who never get sick, was hit with a ghastly cold in May and thought I’d answer the question for anyone else who’s ever asked it.

It’s so annoying isn’t it? You’re on a roll with your exercise regime then you get hit with a cold or the flu and although you hate to miss a workout you’re not sure if it will do you any good.

So it is ok to workout when you’re sick? The truth is it depends. It depends on what the sickness is and depends how serious it is, e.g. the flu vs. a minor cold. Many people insist on not missing their workout and think that it is a good idea to ‘sweat it out’ but I’m not so sure.

Where you’re sick it means your immune system is down. It means that your body is working really hard to repair itself and recover. You may have even come down with something due to being run down in the first place. Sometimes getting a cold is the body’s way of telling you you need to slow down. And we know that often, we women, don’t slow down unless we’re forced to!

So what should you do? Well first weigh up how serious it is and how severe the symptoms are. For example I was so sick I couldn’t go for longer than two minutes without coughing. While my body felt ok I decided that I needed to use all my energy to shift this cold and sweating it out at the gym wasn’t going to help. Plus I was so tired from sleepless nights, that adding more stress to my body I felt would have made it worse. However, it isn’t always the case that you have to miss out. If your symptoms are mild you may benefit from a little light exercise. I know if I wasn’t as bad I would do something, even if it’s something light, just to keep me mobile and moving. There’s nothing worse than sitting about all week surrounded by tissues and cough sweets with your only exercise being going to and from the kettle for hot teas!

So if you feel ok-ish you can do things like:

Gentle walking

An easy bike ride

Light conditioning or Pilates

Light home exercises

If you have severe symptoms such as:

High fever

Achy muscles

Upset stomach

Diarrhea

Vomiting

Cough

Don’t do it!

If you have any of the above symptoms it’s not a good idea to so anything but rest. Listen to what your body is telling you. It’s not a sign of weakness if you rest but a sign of wisdom. Rest up, stay hydrated, eat clean fresh food (although you’ll probably want comfort food) and ride it out. By doing this you will halve the recovery time and recover quicker.

No one has time to be sick and we all hate it but how we handle it when it comes makes all the difference.

For more help and advice contact me on info@sallyhumphries.com

See you soon! And stay healthy!

Sally x