Exercising when sick??

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marie9910
marie9910 Posts: 34 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Does anyone have an opinion on whether it's more harmful or more helpful to exercise when sick? Yesterday I was laid up with what feels like the flu. I did no exercise. Today I'm still sick but feel a little better. DayQuil-ed up and I want to do 30-40 minutes on the elliptical (at home, not the gym). Does anyone here workout when you're sick?

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  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Truly sick? I'll take the day off. A day or even a week to recover from being sick isn't going to hold me back over a lifetime.

    But if it's just something like the sniffles, I'm not going to cancel a workout for it.
  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,691 Member
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    The usual rule of thumb I've read is that if a cold is above the neck (sniffles and sneezes), go ahead and exercise. If it has moved into your lungs, rest. For fever, I also rest.

    I'm sick too and it's driving me crazy. I have a race in two weeks and I don't want to lose fitness. OTOH, the weather doesn't exactly invite me to be outside.
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
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    I don't train when I'm sick mostly because I feel weak and want to rest, but if you FEEL like training then I don't think you're that sick. I wouldn't feel bad about curling up and Netflix binging though.
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,619 Member
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    When I had flu, I could not work out at all. I could barely walk. Anything more than easy walking led to coughing. I was off exercise for about a week and it took a lot longer than that to get my stamina back. With a mild cold or sinus infection, brisk walking helps open up my breathing and helps me feel better.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    This seems like a no brainer...

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