Can you exercise when you are not feeling well?

Hi guys. I thought I'd deal with a less emotional topic for a change and this was a myth that I wanted to bust. Now some of my readers will know that I fell a bit ill after my exhausting holiday in Rome (which involved a lot of walking around all day in the hot summer weather and not getting enough rest) - nothing serious, just a bit of a cold. It started out with a sore throat, then I developed a runny nose the next day along with a congested head and then a cough. It has been unpleasant for the last few days but thankfully I am on the mend now after a few days but yes, tit is always a pain when one falls ill like this as it disrupts one's everyday life and for me, that meant not being able to do sports.

Getting a cold or the flu is never pleasant.

When I was a child, my parents used to ban me from doing any kind of sports when I was recovering from a cold or the flu on the basis that the physical exertion that came from sports could lead to a relapse of the illness, making you fall sick all over again. They even claimed that you could suddenly collapse and die from a heart attack if you exercised when you had the flu. I used to try very hard to hide any symptoms from my parents whenever I had a cold, just so I could continue doing sports. But is there any truth to what my parents believed in, or is it just old wives' tales? I am not a medical professional but as both a gymnast and a gymnastics coach, I will be talking about the issue of doing sports when you are unwell and I shall attempt to cast some light on this myth. Please note that I am not dishing out medical advice here, I am merely discussing the topic here with you.

Firstly, I have a simple answer: no, exercise per se wouldn't cause you to have a relapse or suddenly die I have no idea what the origins of my parents' assumptions are, but they are plain wrong. Exercise isn't bad for your body when you are ill - the body is surprisingly resilient and you are still going to be able to do many of the things you can normally do when you're not ill which is just as well, as most of us do continue working despite being quite ill. In fact, there are a few good reasons for you to exercise when you are under the weather - now unless you are so ill that you are bedridden and barely able to move, getting some exercise is great for your body. You are getting some fresh air, you are improving your blood circulation, you are stretching your muscles and if you are having some fun, it also lifts your spirits. Nonetheless, you need to consider the following factors if you are exercising when you are unwell.

Do you feel like exercising when you are ill?

If you are recovering from a cold or the flu, be aware of your limitations. Your stamina may be worse than normal, you may tire a lot more easily than normal and when you do, it is necessary to listen to your body and not push yourself too hard. Be realistic about your performance if you're exerising when you are unwell. Likewise, if you are suffering for a congested head, then it will affect your sense of balance and anything that involves going upside down or even just bending over may be frightfully unpleasant. When I was diving, I used to find going underwater extremely unpleasant when I was all bunged up with a cold - I don't think it did me any harm, it was just very uncomfortable and in hindsight, I probably should have stayed away for a session or two until I had recovered.

There are decongestants that you can take to combat the symptoms of a congested head, but be aware that many of these medicines have side effects that may cause drowsiness - so you may feel more like sleeping rather than exercising after having taken them. Likewise, if you are taking any other medication for your illness, do always double check what the side effects of those medicines may be and if they may affect the way you perform in sports. So if you are going to experience some drowsiness, you should not partake in a sport that involves quick reaction times (like tennis or badminton) - a gentler yoga class would be more suitable. If you are experiencing any kind of pain (such as in the form of a headache or a sore throat), then you may want to take some kind of painkiller medication to deal with the pain before you exercise. Be prepared to change your workout plans and be flexible under such circumstances.

Being unwell will affect your performance

Nonetheless, I would recommend the following rule of thumb (this is based on personal experience rather than any medical expertise): any kind of illness will involve a cycle, whereby in stage 1, we are gradually getting worse and in stage 2, we are recovering and getting better. You should be careful in stage 1 as you are not very sure just how ill you are going to be - you really shouldn't be pushing yourself or taking any risks.  But if you are convinced that you are already in stage 2 (and do be honest with yourself), then you can afford to do a lot more given that there is a lot less uncertainty about your recovery.  Always listen to your body - it will tell you what your limitations are and you should then work around the limitations imposed by your condition.

As for the part of my parents' claim that you could succumb to a sudden heart attack and die if you exercise when you are ill, let's look at this a bit closer as I don't want to just dismiss this out of hand as ridiculous bullshit. Whilst it is true that some seemingly healthy people have suddenly died from heart attacks - but this has absolutely nothing to do with a common cold or a bout of flu bringing on the heart attack. Often, these are people with undiagnosed heart conditions who may appear to be very healthy - for example, they may have potentially lethal soft plaques growing inside the lining of your coronary arteries that could rupture and cause a heart attack at any time. Now for people with such conditions, they could get a heart attack anytime, but it has absolutely nothing to do with having the flu or a cold.

No you won't drop dead if you exercise when you have the flu.

I have exercised when I have had a cold and I have also completely rested as well - my conclusion is that moderate exercise made virtually no difference to my condition. It didn't speed up my recovery nor did it slow it down. It neither made my symptoms any better or worse. But if I may be honest, I don't really enjoy exercising when I am unwell - everything just seems to much harder, my body aches, I feel tired more easily and I feel less coordinated. It can be a frustrating experience if you are trying to do a sport like diving or gymnastics when you are recovering from a bout of flu, that is why I recommend something like yoga instead. Depending on how severe your bout of flu is, the recovery period may take anything from a few days to a few weeks. Listen to your body: even if you can exercise, do something that you will enjoy so you will reap the benefits of it. It shouldn't feel like a chore and it certainly shouldn't frustrate you.

Lastly, if you have a runny nose or a cough, remember to have some tissues handy when you are exercising. Use the tissues to cover your mouth when you are coughing and sneezing, make sure you dispose of your tissues properly after use. If you have used some gym equipment, do wipe it down in case of you coughed or sneezed on it. It is just common courtesy not to spread your germs around and make others in your gym sick too. Apart from that, well, feel free to exercise when you are recovering from a cold or the flu. I'm very interested to hear what your experiences have been on the issue - please feel free to leave a comment below and let's talk about it. Many thanks for reading!