That's Fit

Should you exercise when you're sick?

Posted: Oct 24th 2007 11:00AM by Bethany Sanders
Filed under: Fitness, General Health, Healthy Habits

You wake up early to get ready for your morning run and discover that you've got a sore throat and your head is throbbing. Should you exercise when you're sick? It depends, says CBS news, on where and how sick you are.

Go ahead and exercise if:

Your illness is above the neck: sniffles, sneezing, watery eyes.
You take something to relieve your symptoms and feel generally well.
You can breathe easily.

Put that workout off for another day if:

Your symptoms are below your neck: coughing, body aches, or fatigue.
You have a fever. (Exercise will further raise your body temperature.)
You have bronchial tightness or wheezing.

Even if your symptoms are mild and you do decide to exercise, it's important that you are honest with yourself about your limits. Going for that 5-mile run can wait until you recover, but it may be ok for you to take a moderate walk. Better yet, try Pilates or yoga. If you exercise in a gym, it's polite not to share your germs with your fellow members. Stay home when you're most contagious, and when you do return, wash your hands frequently to avoid the spread of infection. And finally, if your body is telling you it' just needs a break to recover, don't feel guilty about giving it what it needs.

Tags: cold and flu, ColdAndFlu, exercising with a cold, ExercisingWithACold, working out when you're sick, WorkingOutWhenYou'reSick

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

10-24-2007 @ 1:12PM

Pete said...

What about stomach flu?

10-24-2007 @ 1:18PM

Bethany Sanders said...

Thanks for your comment, Pete!

Stomach falls "below the neck," so I wouldn't! I'd worry about dehydration more than anything, and since the stomach flu usually comes with a fever, I think it falls in the stay-home-and-rest category.

Thanks for reading!

11-29-2007 @ 4:02AM

zinc said...

Tried it both ways.
And it is true: Above the neck light excercise.
Below the neck rest.

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