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You’ve finally got your workout routine down pat, and made working out a regular habit in your life. Maybe you spin a couple times a week, or run every day, or do Pilates every evening after work. Whatever you do to stay fit, you’ve made working out just as much a part of your everyday lifestyle as you have your daily cappuccino.
Then, the unthinkable happens: you get sick. Sore throat. Fever. Body aches and pains. A nose you can’t breathe through so you’re forced to do that sexy, mouth-breathing. Unladylike stomach issues and gasp, not diarrhea, too! Being sick is the worst not only because you feel like sh*t, but also because it tends to rob you of any last bit of dignity you may have.
There is a bit of good news if you’re feeling under the weather. Fitter people have been found to recover from sickness much faster, and will experience milder symptoms than those who don’t work out. In this way, exercise does help you to get over a cold, especially if you’ve been faithful to your workouts. In fact, thirty minutes of regular exercise a couple of times a week has been proven to strengthen immunity by increasing the amount of T cells, which are your body’s first line of defense in fighting infection. So cheer up, fellow gym junkies, your exercise habits will pay off in helping you to feel better soon!
So now that you’re sick and stuck at home, you may be wondering how you can make the most of the time you have while you’re sick and stuck at home. Should you spend your time at home resting? Or should you force yourself to do your daily run and weights routine? Is it good to work out when you’re sick? How do you know if you should work out when you’re unwell?
When to skip a workout when sick
Knowing when to skip the gym heavily relies on the symptoms you currently have. Read on to find out if you should skip your workout when you’re sick, or if you’ve got the green light to exercise.
1. If you have a fever, skip the gym. With a fever, your body is already needing all the rest and help it can get to fight off sickness, so you won’t be doing yourself any favors if you’re exercising with a fever. Plus, a fever usually indicates that you’re still contagious, so definitely skip the gym.
2. If you have the common cold, skip or significantly limit your workout. Knowing when not to exercise with a cold relies heavily on your specific systems. If you have symptoms that are above the neck (e.g., runny nose, sneezing, etc.), you should be fine doing a milder exercise routine. Just be cognizant of how you’re feeling before, during, and after your exercise. If exercise worsens your cold, take the next day or two off. Or if you normally run, reduce your 30-minute run to a 20-minute walk.
3. If your cold is more severe, choose rest over exercise. It’s one thing to choose to exercise if you have a cold that is quite mild. However, if your symptoms are below the neck (e.g., your chest is congested or you have bronchial tightness), it’s probably best to skip the gym and focus on resting.
4. If you have any stomach symptoms, don’t work out. Working out with any stomach issues could potentially worsen your symptoms. Plus, do you really want to wear those tight leggings when you’ve already popped a few Pepto Bismol tablets?
5. Got the flu? Definitely skip the gym. The flu is notorious for wiping you out with fatigue, so there’s no reason to work out when rest is your #1 treatment. Plus, the flu is highly contagious and definitely something you don’t want to spread around. Focus on resting to allow your immune system to recover, and get as much sleep as you can.
If your symptoms are mild enough to where you feel comfortable going to the gym, be sure to be mindful of your sickness when sharing equipment with others. Carry your hand-sanitizer with you, wash your hands often, and wipe down the equipment before and after you use it. Since your immune defenses will be lowered (making you more vulnerable to sickness), both your body and everyone else at the gym will thank you!
