Happy "Cold" Thanksgiving!!!

For a little over a week, I've been battling a pretty nasty cold. Coupled with a recent trip my took to see my in-laws (who ALSO happened to be sick), suffice it to say that I've been feeling like crap lately.

However, playing it X-Style, I tried to continue out my training regimen.

Last Monday I attempted Chest,Shoulders,& Triceps. Let me tell you that it DID NOT go well. My body felt like it had been put through a cement mixer with concrete bricks. Coupled w/ the head pressure and running nose, I had absolutely 0% energy. My rep/weight numbers were really low that day. Tuesday (Plyometrics) was a complete disaster. Didn't get 15-20 minutes into the workout and I had to quit. I thought my heart was going to burst it was beating so fast. My heart rate monitor said I was around 195-200. HOLY COW!!! Usually on a good plyo day it stays around 175-180. I finally stopped shortly after seeing that and asked myself, "Wait...Is it even safe to be working out while you're sick?"

Who doesn't catch a little cold right in the middle of the week when your workouts were going so great? There's been many times that my workouts were 100% the best I've ever had and right when I was on top of my game - I caught some cold bug and it frustrated me to no end!

Common sense tells me that the body should fully recover before engaging in an intense workout, but is a light day or a less intense cardio day okay?

On one hand you don't want to break progress by waiting too long between workouts, yet on the other hand, you don't want to remain sick because the body will have to allocate nutrition in building muscle tissue as opposed to building an immune response."

Well after some research and getting some advice from one of my friends ACE, who is an amazing Triathelete, This is what I've come up with:

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The rule is: If your chest is congested, you have a fever, chills, dehydrated, or any other cold ailment from the neck down, DO NOT WORKOUT. Chest congestion and any type of exercise do not mix well. Aerobic or anaerobic activity can overwork your heart and can cause your chest cold to develop into a bronchitis or pneumonia. Lifting weights can naturally increase blood pressure. Combined with over working your heart, you can really cause damage if not careful when exercising while ill.

However, if you have a head cold with minor sinus pain, sniffles, sneezing, etc., it is fine to workout as long as you have a normal energy level and are not feeling sluggish. Be careful not to overdo your activity with high-intensity workouts. You need to drop your intensity level a bit because your body is using energy to fight whatever is that's making you feel ill. Keep hydrated by drinking 3-4 quarts of water a day and eat healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, and lean meats. This will enable your body to fight off the “bug” causing your symptoms.

There is no evidence that you can “run off” or “sweat out” a cold. Studies have proven that you cannot decrease the duration of the cold or flu symptoms by exercising. In fact, if you workout too hard, you can actually get more sick.
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So, being that it was the Thanksgiving holidays, and my family is/was going back to see the in-laws, I decided to take the rest of the week to let my body get back to 100%.

Being that I would only miss 4 actual days of workouts, I will just start back up next week as if this week never happened. I'll be able to come back to the workouts at 100% and give it 110%. While I'm a little disappointed and annoyed that I will have to break up my 90 day straight workout, I think it's in my best interest to get well.

I'll be back NEXT WEEK pushing play.