Did I lose some fitness?

choosing_fitness
choosing_fitness Posts: 102
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi- I have taken about 4-5 rest days off this week (starting from last Friday), I have had a major sinus infection and I have felt too exhausted to workout. I have worked out at least 4-6 times a week for the last 3 years. I feel awful taking this much time away. Will my fitness decrease drastically?
- Also, just a sidenote, I have stayed within my calories for the last week.

Any tips would be great! :)

Replies

  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
    No, it won't. Don't be tempted to do a light workout until your infection is over as you'll just prolong the illness. GWS. :smile:
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Nope, you'll be fine. Hope you feel better.
  • AdamFoureyes
    AdamFoureyes Posts: 18 Member
    I ride my bike 3 times a week, if i miss a couple of rides i really feel the loss of fitness, but in your case as the others said, its more important to get fully clear of it first, good luck
  • andreamaym
    andreamaym Posts: 179 Member
    I was out for 2 weeks when I had the flu. My first workout seemed challenging but after that I was fine. You'll bounce back quickly, especially if it's only for a few days.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    You'll be fine! I've had to take a couple breaks due to illness too and just went right back to it.
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
    I read recently that one workout a week will maintain one's fitness level for several weeks. Besides which, it is good to take a week off once in a while to let your body recover. After a week off, you'll probably find your performance has improved.
  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
    A lot of that depends on the person. I know my cardiovascular "shelf-life" is around 5 days before I start to see diminishing fitness levels. Strength in the weight room is around 2 weeks. When recovering from sickness your first few workouts maybe a little sluggish, but you should bounce back quickly if you're as active as you say.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    No...I regularly take rest weeks as part of my training. A lot of people are right on the bubble of over-train and actually benefit from taking some time off here and there.
  • Hadabetter
    Hadabetter Posts: 942 Member
    If you start from a highly conditioned level you will notice a drop in your fitness after 4-5 days. There's an old saying among pro football players that it takes 6 months to get into shape but only 4 days to get out of shape. But here again, we're talking about very high fitness levels. The typical "weekend warrior", or casual exerciser probably won't notice much change.

    It really doesn't matter much though. Your #1 objective should be to rest and get well. You can work to get your fitness back after that.
  • yuiconnor
    yuiconnor Posts: 32
    same here. I had a surgery last week and I took this whole week of because my doctor said so, I also felt bad, so I did some light workout, such as stretch, and some workout videos on youtube (not the cardio ones, but the arm/abs/legs workout) just to get my heartrate pump up. Anyways, good luck on us! hopefully we won't lose any strength. :disagree:

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