Can Exercising make you more susceptible to colds and flus?

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nafroese
nafroese Posts: 122 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
So normally I am pretty healthy in regards to colds in flus. I catch about one or two a year and no big deal! Now I am working out pretty hard about 6 days a week with a full time job and I am a teacher, so I know that I am exposed to more than the average joe but do you think that because I am working out hard that I am more likely to get colds? I am working on my second cold in just over a month, and not the common variety but the kind that sucks you dry! I really had to push myself to work out tonight and I don't want to take a break..any suggestions or comments on this? Thanks!

Replies

  • superhippiechik
    superhippiechik Posts: 1,044 Member
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    Not sure about working out but the Job sounds pretty high risk. Kids are gross!lol
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,708 Member
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    High intensity exercise will lower your immunity factor for a short time (hours) so yes you are a little more susceptible to cold and flu viruses.
  • zsesteacher
    zsesteacher Posts: 106 Member
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    I hear you...I'm also a teacher and I've had a cold for the past two weeks...I'm on my second round of antibiotics plus shots..and I still don't feel 100%...but our job makes us more at risk of catching one since we are around kids like 9 hours straight...I don't think exercise has nothing to do with it cause I've been active for the past year and half and I didn't really get sick of a cold last year but who knows...hope you feel better...

    Yvette
  • zsesteacher
    zsesteacher Posts: 106 Member
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    I hear you...I'm also a teacher and I've had a cold for the past two weeks...I'm on my second round of antibiotics plus shots..and I still don't feel 100%...but our job makes us more at risk of catching one since we are around kids like 9 hours straight...I don't think exercise has nothing to do with it cause I've been active for the past year and half and I didn't really get sick of a cold last year but who knows...hope you feel better...

    Yvette
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,708 Member
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    I hear you...I'm also a teacher and I've had a cold for the past two weeks...I'm on my second round of antibiotics plus shots..and I still don't feel 100%...but our job makes us more at risk of catching one since we are around kids like 9 hours straight...I don't think exercise has nothing to do with it cause I've been active for the past year and half and I didn't really get sick of a cold last year but who knows...hope you feel better...

    Yvette
    Just to let you know..............antibiotics don't work on viruses. And all it meant last year was that the cold virus that was going around, you already were immune to. There are thousands of cold viruses.
  • bizco
    bizco Posts: 1,949 Member
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    No, exercise does not cause the common cold, a virus does. A cold virus enters your body through your mouth or nose. The virus can spread through droplets in the air when someone who is sick coughs, sneezes or talks. But it also spreads by hand-to-hand contact with someone who has a cold or by using shared objects, such as utensils, towels, toys or telephones. If you touch your eyes, nose or mouth after such contact or exposure, you're likely to "catch" a cold.

    There is also no evidence that your chances of getting a cold are related to factors such as exercise, diet, or enlarged tonsils or adenoids.

    The fact that you're around lots of people in the workplace puts you at greater risk. Do you workout at a gym? Other places where lots of people congregate? Your best defense is to wash your hands regularly.
  • darkrider42
    darkrider42 Posts: 5,342 Member
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    Studies have shown that normal* amounts of exercise generally help make you less likely to get sick while overtraining can make you more susceptible because your body is expending so much energy repairing and recovering from the exercise that it doesn't have a whole lot of resources left to deal with fighting off invasions of germs.

    Sleep is also a HUGE factor. Chronic sleep-deprivation is likely to be a greater risk factor than exercise, although combining sleep-deprivation and overtraining, wellllll, you might as well just start licking doorknobs, never washing your hands, and letting sick people sneeze and cough on you.
  • wolfchild59
    wolfchild59 Posts: 2,608 Member
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    When I work out on a regular basis I get sick way less than when I'm not. And when I do get sick, it's really mild and goes away quickly. Also, the cardio clears up a stuffed head better than any cold medicine I've ever used. Clears me up so well that just knowing how well I'll be able to breathe is enough to get me to the gym. :)

    And this is from someone that typically spent every cold and flu season sick from start to finish. When I was a kid, I would miss so much school my teachers just sent lesson plans to my parents. Nowadays I get mildly jealous of people that get sick enough to call into work, I can't even remember the last time I was viably sick enough to call in. lol
  • becka63
    becka63 Posts: 712 Member
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    It might be that after your first cold you didn't allow your immune system to properly recover, so you were naturally more susceptible to another bug that was going around.
  • redcore
    redcore Posts: 15
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    Studies have shown that normal* amounts of exercise generally help make you less likely to get sick while overtraining can make you more susceptible because your body is expending so much energy repairing and recovering from the exercise that it doesn't have a whole lot of resources left to deal with fighting off invasions of germs.

    Sleep is also a HUGE factor. Chronic sleep-deprivation is likely to be a greater risk factor than exercise, although combining sleep-deprivation and overtraining, wellllll, you might as well just start licking doorknobs, never washing your hands, and letting sick people sneeze and cough on you.
    this ^ :)
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    So normally I am pretty healthy in regards to colds in flus. I catch about one or two a year and no big deal! Now I am working out pretty hard about 6 days a week with a full time job and I am a teacher, so I know that I am exposed to more than the average joe but do you think that because I am working out hard that I am more likely to get colds? I am working on my second cold in just over a month, and not the common variety but the kind that sucks you dry! I really had to push myself to work out tonight and I don't want to take a break..any suggestions or comments on this? Thanks!

    i dont think you are more likely to get colds if you work out, but if you work out excessively which is putting a strain on your body then yes, you would be more likely to get a cold as you are running yourself down.

    my comment would be, take a break!
  • manjingirl
    manjingirl Posts: 188 Member
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    So normally I am pretty healthy in regards to colds in flus. I catch about one or two a year and no big deal! Now I am working out pretty hard about 6 days a week with a full time job and I am a teacher, so I know that I am exposed to more than the average joe but do you think that because I am working out hard that I am more likely to get colds? I am working on my second cold in just over a month, and not the common variety but the kind that sucks you dry! I really had to push myself to work out tonight and I don't want to take a break..any suggestions or comments on this? Thanks!
    Some people have mentioned the downside of overtraining, which, by empirical evidence is exercising at 85% intensity for more than 45 minutes per day on a regular basis. Your immune system does start to suffer, it's called the inverted J curve of fitness - more is better up to a point.

    Also, every time you train hard, you have a window of about 2 hours after when your immune system cannot respond as promptly and aggressively as normal. You may be slightly more susceptible to colds/flu and some other infections during that time IF the germs happen to be around in sufficient quantity.

    One of the reasons thought to contribute to the increase in colds/flu in winter is the fact that we hang around in side more and germs can more easily pass from person to person. But it doesn't quite explain it all.

    The other things to think about are: sleep - already mentioned by others; seasonal variation - some years are just worse cold/flu years than others; nutrition - although still vague nutrition definitely plays a role in the ability of the immune system to respond to germs.

    As someone mentioned most colds/flu are caused by viruses that are not affected by standard antibiotics. BUT sometimes the virus infection can cause your immune system to dip just long enough for a bacteria to come along and join in the fun, either in your nose, throat, ear canal, upper airways and occasionally in your lungs (pneumonia). In general, the discharges (snot, mucus) will become alittle chunkier at that point, though even that is not always the case.


    Working out while sick - again empirical evidence suggests that if you feel as though you are getting a cold/flu you should stop exercising for the first 2 days - or the infection will last longer. After that it's depends how you feel. Many people are scared of having a break because they are worried about breaking their routine and not getting back into it. I have no suggestions for that except commit to yourself that you will start exercising again just as soon as possible.

    Gee, that was a much longer response than I planned. Hope it helps.
  • nafroese
    nafroese Posts: 122 Member
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    So normally I am pretty healthy in regards to colds in flus. I catch about one or two a year and no big deal! Now I am working out pretty hard about 6 days a week with a full time job and I am a teacher, so I know that I am exposed to more than the average joe but do you think that because I am working out hard that I am more likely to get colds? I am working on my second cold in just over a month, and not the common variety but the kind that sucks you dry! I really had to push myself to work out tonight and I don't want to take a break..any suggestions or comments on this? Thanks!
    Some people have mentioned the downside of overtraining, which, by empirical evidence is exercising at 85% intensity for more than 45 minutes per day on a regular basis. Your immune system does start to suffer, it's called the inverted J curve of fitness - more is better up to a point.

    Also, every time you train hard, you have a window of about 2 hours after when your immune system cannot respond as promptly and aggressively as normal. You may be slightly more susceptible to colds/flu and some other infections during that time IF the germs happen to be around in sufficient quantity.

    One of the reasons thought to contribute to the increase in colds/flu in winter is the fact that we hang around in side more and germs can more easily pass from person to person. But it doesn't quite explain it all.

    The other things to think about are: sleep - already mentioned by others; seasonal variation - some years are just worse cold/flu years than others; nutrition - although still vague nutrition definitely plays a role in the ability of the immune system to respond to germs.

    As someone mentioned most colds/flu are caused by viruses that are not affected by standard antibiotics. BUT sometimes the virus infection can cause your immune system to dip just long enough for a bacteria to come along and join in the fun, either in your nose, throat, ear canal, upper airways and occasionally in your lungs (pneumonia). In general, the discharges (snot, mucus) will become alittle chunkier at that point, though even that is not always the case.


    Working out while sick - again empirical evidence suggests that if you feel as though you are getting a cold/flu you should stop exercising for the first 2 days - or the infection will last longer. After that it's depends how you feel. Many people are scared of having a break because they are worried about breaking their routine and not getting back into it. I have no suggestions for that except commit to yourself that you will start exercising again just as soon as possible.

    Gee, that was a much longer response than I planned. Hope it helps.

    Thanks for this! I know that I am more susceptible because of my work environment and I also know that I have been working out for about a year and a half and not been very sick at all. It is just in the last 3 months or so that I have really stepped up the pace in regards to my workouts and this last month has been very hard! So i am not actually surprised at the information but I do really appreciate it! Thanks! I took some cold meds last night before bed and feel somewhat better this morning! i also know that I am somewhat sleep deprived so I am heading to bed early tonight!
  • koosdel
    koosdel Posts: 3,317 Member
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    So normally I am pretty healthy in regards to colds in flus. I catch about one or two a year and no big deal! Now I am working out pretty hard about 6 days a week with a full time job and I am a teacher, so I know that I am exposed to more than the average joe but do you think that because I am working out hard that I am more likely to get colds? I am working on my second cold in just over a month, and not the common variety but the kind that sucks you dry! I really had to push myself to work out tonight and I don't want to take a break..any suggestions or comments on this? Thanks!

    Take a break. You're not training for an invasion. Recovery days are equally important to excersize days.
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
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    Take a break. You're not training for an invasion. Recovery days are equally important to excersize days.

    ^ This, please.
  • hannahlbur
    hannahlbur Posts: 221 Member
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    Weirdly I have just put my status bemoaning my illness again! I'm not sure if I have just been unlucky or it is because I am working hard at the gym and not getting enough sleep : /
    I feel pretty tired and run down all the time and I think because I feel stressed a lot this might be making it worse too.
  • hbrittingham
    hbrittingham Posts: 2,518 Member
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    Also, if you are working out in a gym, you are being exposed to even more germs. I wash my hands immediately after working out because I know for sure many of the people working out on the equipment before me don't wash their hands!
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
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    Since your food diary isn't open, this is might not apply at all... but make sure you're eating enough to get proper nutrition, too.
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
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    Take a break. You're not training for an invasion. Recovery days are equally important to excersize days.

    ^ This, please.
    Yes. If there is no recovery, there is no improvement.
  • BeeElMarvin
    BeeElMarvin Posts: 2,086 Member
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    High intensity exercise will lower your immunity factor for a short time (hours) so yes you are a little more susceptible to cold and flu viruses.
    Seriously?!? I did not know that. Thanks. (great, now I feel like I'm getting the sniffles...)

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