What should I do when I'm ill?! HELP

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Hi folks,

So I'm rapidly coming down with a headcold - fuzzy/buzzing head, aches and pains, sinuses messed up and very tired. But as I'm still fairly new to dieting I don't want to give it all up for a few days because let's face it, I'm quite likely to slip back into old habits and reverse any work I've done so far.

Diet-wise, should I stick to my daily 1200 calories as normal, or do I need to eat more to get rid of the bug? And will this affect my metabolism/weight/etc?

Exercise-wise, I feel horrendous physically. Just managed Jillian's 30DS this morning but fairly sure I'm dying now. Should I stop doing this and restart the 30DS when I'm better (AAAAAARRRGGGHHHHH)? Should I be doing any exercise at all?!

Thanks in advance :-)
*collapses in a heap on the floor*

Replies

  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
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    Hi folks,

    So I'm rapidly coming down with a headcold - fuzzy/buzzing head, aches and pains, sinuses messed up and very tired. But as I'm still fairly new to dieting I don't want to give it all up for a few days because let's face it, I'm quite likely to slip back into old habits and reverse any work I've done so far.

    Diet-wise, should I stick to my daily 1200 calories as normal, or do I need to eat more to get rid of the bug? And will this affect my metabolism/weight/etc?

    Exercise-wise, I feel horrendous physically. Just managed Jillian's 30DS this morning but fairly sure I'm dying now. Should I stop doing this and restart the 30DS when I'm better (AAAAAARRRGGGHHHHH)? Should I be doing any exercise at all?!

    Thanks in advance :-)
    *collapses in a heap on the floor*

    As to exercise - I think the rule is that head and above (runny nose, etc) you can workout - lightly. But if lower - hard to breathe, etc not to.

    Honestly, you're sick. Eat/drink what you need to get better - then come back to us. A week or so is not gonna undo all your hard work. Just focus on getting better.
  • RNewton4269
    RNewton4269 Posts: 663 Member
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    Rest. Your body needs it. When you feel better start again...remember to drink a lot of liquids..preferably water...and eat like you normally would.

    good luck!
  • Clew
    Clew Posts: 910 Member
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    I'm not a big fan of working out when you are sick. Your body needs rest to recover!!!

    As for me, when I'm sick - if I feel hungry, I'll eat. If I don't I don't.

    Feel better soon! :flowerforyou:
  • Amo_Angelus
    Amo_Angelus Posts: 604 Member
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    Good god, why would you do that to your body? It's busy enough trying to fight the infection, give the excercise a rest. There's a reason why you feel like you don't want to do anything, your body i otherwise engaged at the moment, pleae try again later. A for food, liten to your body. Sometimes you need more, sometimes you need less. All the time you need chicken soup (personal philosophy on the chicken soup although there is something in it that directly relates to white blood cells so it does help, medically speaking, but it's not exclusive, you can get it in other foods too).
  • Enforcer25
    Enforcer25 Posts: 350 Member
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    Skip the gym until you get better, your body needs to recover and I feel that working out can just prolong that because your body is recovering from an illness and your workout, when you coe back you will be fine. Good luck and feel better.
  • sophjakesmom
    sophjakesmom Posts: 904 Member
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    Listen to your body. If you can get a light workout in, great, if not, rest. Just promise yourself that when you feel better (not perfect, but better.) that you will get right back at it. Hope that happens soon!:drinker:
  • moonflower09
    moonflower09 Posts: 91 Member
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    Good luck. I am just coming off that same illness. Its been over 3 weeks. I still have a cough but finally feeling better. I faithfully kept to my meal plans and logging. Excercise was very hard. I havent been active in a while so I started out slowy last Monday with a walking schedule. Training for a 5k and did not want to miss out on training days. Hopefully yours will heal faster. Keep up w/ the water.
  • BRANDYLYNETTE
    BRANDYLYNETTE Posts: 192 Member
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    You have take care of yourself when you are sick. Dont overdo it. Eat healthy....and rest if you need to rest. Dont stress over this. If it sets you back a week....so be it. You may not lose weight....but, you CAN maintain! : ) Just dont dig into the chips and cake. Fix some soup....hot tea....and rest. : ) Who knows, maybe you will start feeling better and can take a walk. I wouldnt worry about Jillian's work out tape right now. YOU HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF! Take it easy for a few....and then get back on it when you feel better. : )
  • notebooksecrets
    notebooksecrets Posts: 36 Member
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    Thanks guys, I have a tendency to overthink things and I completely forgot that listening to my body was even an option!
  • AdAstra47
    AdAstra47 Posts: 823 Member
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    Agreed. No exercise 'til your body feels better, plenty of rest and plenty of liquids. Be gentle with yourself while you're sick. I was recently ill and pretty much reduced to liquids only for several days, my throat felt awful. So I had lots of cold protein powder drinks and Emergen-C powder drinks, and hot chamomile tea and chicken bouillion cubes / broth. Those were all full of helpful nutrients & vitamins, yet gentle to the upset stomach, and still on my diet plan.
  • candb
    candb Posts: 238
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    I'm getting over a cold myself. What I did was listen to my body. I rested the first two days and yesterday, even though it was still in my chest I just felt like I NEEDED to workout. So I did. But even then I still listened to my body and modified the moves on my DVD to a lower intensity when I needed to. If your body is telling you to rest then do it.

    4 years ago I set a goal that I wanted to run a marathon for my 30th birthday. So I did. Problem was, that about a week and a half before I ran it I developed a bad chest cold. I was so stubborn that I pushed on and did it anyway. I ended up having to walk a large part of the race because my breathing was so bad and then I was sick for MONTHS. In hindsight I should have skipped that race, gotten well, and picked another out a month or two later to run.
  • coatsie79
    coatsie79 Posts: 187 Member
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    I've been feeling unwell the last few days. I thought it was just a head cold, but aside from the normal cold symptons I feel very nautious and can't keep anything down. I haven't excercised in a couple of days because breathing is difficult. I've decided just to eat and drink what I can, rest up and get back in to checking my calorie & excercise goals when i'm feeling better.