Getting sick & weight loss

Amylynn

Hello. I have been so sick for the last 4 days. I mean, too sick to even get off the couch. I feel slightly better now, but am still feeling pretty sick. How long should I wait to start exercising again? I don't want my body to go back to the point where it feels sore after every exercise I do, but, I also don't want to start exercising too soon to where I make myself sicker.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

nina1968

I don't think you should do anything until you are 100% better, You will run yourself down and be back on the couch. Just give your body time to get well. dont worry about gaining weight, I am sure you will be fine. Best of luck, Hope you get well soon.

running_mom

I've been dealing with the same thing. I've been sick for at least the last week and thought I was doing ok. So I went to the gym and it just made me feel like junk. In my personal opinion, I'd wait to you feel like your normal self. Just getting up doing housework and getting back into the swing of things with the kids was a work out for me. Slowly get back into the routine.

smae1980

If you feel well enough , maybe you could go for a light walk instead of doing a strenuous workout. If you've been that sick, you probably haven't eaten enough in the last few days to support rigorous exercise anyway. Once you do get back to your routine you probably will be a little sore, but not as bad as you probably were when you were first starting out

empiremom

definitely rest!! not too much. i was sick a couple years ago and pushed thru cuz i thought i was being weak. i ended up with pnemonia and i was sidelined for 8 weeks!

take it from experience. your body doesnt need to be multitasking trying its best to get better and working hard. but dont "do nothing". i agree...a light walk to clear your head will do you well.

acakeforawife

There's a general rule of thumb that if you're sick 'above the neck' -- stuffy nose, sore throat, etc., you can come back to exercise after just a couple of days, but if you're sick 'below the neck' -- flu, or chest cold, bronchitis, etc. -- you should wait till you're fully recovered.

I just had to take a week off for a bad chest cold, and today I finally got back to working out. I thought I'd really struggle, but I actually felt refreshed. I think it totally payed to take that time off! (Edited to add: I did do some walking while I was sick, just nothing that would elevate my heart rate too much or cause me to breathe hard or anything.)

Feel better soon!

BrendaLee

I do light exercise if I'm sick- a walk or a few minutes of aerobics...whatever I feel I can do. If I can do nothing, I don't worry about it, but if I can do something, I find it helps me get better quicker.
__

When it comes to something like a chest cold, once you're past the point it's getting worse, and you're on the mend, a fresh air walk will probably speed the healing process as it helps to clear mucus.

balance9

Sick-on-the-couch-sick is REALLY sick, not head-cold sick, so take it easy. Even a single heavy anaerobic workout (breathing hard, can't carry on a conversation) will depress your immune system for several hours afterwards...which is why you absolutely need to wait until you are feeling better before returning to our old routine. If not, as some posters said, you'll be heading right back to the couch. Sometimes we push so hard that our body actually says 'enough' and forces us to get some rest by getting sick:-) As soon as you feel like it, start walking every day for a week, then go to 50% for week 2, then back to full-time. You won't gain real weight in one week unless you're eating thousands of extra calories, and you probably don't feel like doing that!

BamaRose0107

Take it easy untill you are fully well. Your body is probably still trying to re energize itself. Just think of how sick you were and how much your body was trying to fight the illness. I have just gotten over a bad stomach virus and decided oh yeah I feel great today I think I will workout! Bad idea! The next day I don't think I got out of bed I was so exhausted.

Amylynn

Thanks everyone for the advice. I think I will do as most of you suggest & just stay away from exercise until I am 100% better because I have a bad case of the flu I think. I feel about 80% better, but I can tell that if I were to stress my body right now with exercise that I could easily decline back to full sickness. For all of you who have also been sick, I hope you feel better soon