'Tis the season to be -well - germ-ridden and poorly if the winter bugs are spreading as fast as they seem to be. So you're training for an event or you've just got those last few pounds to lose before to big Christmas party...what do you do? Keep your fingers crossed and 'sweat it out' or give yourself a break and come back stronger on the other side?
A general rule of thumb is this; anything above the neck, you're fine to exercise in moderation. Anything below, take a breather and leave your trainers at home until you feel better.
So if you have a common cold, you're fine as long as you don't have a fever. Just lower the intensity, take it steady and focus on maintaining rather than improving until you're fully recovered. Remember your immune system takes a battering if you train too hard and if it's already compromised you'll just take an age to get better.
If you have a fever, DON'T train. You run the risk of dehydration and heatstroke. Similarly, if you have a cough, chest infection or other respiratory illness, exercise will exacerbate the problem. It goes without saying that you need your heart and lungs on top form when training, right?
Use common sense and listen to your body. If you don't feel up to it, don't do it. Sometimes you're better off taking a couple of days break, letting the illness run it's course and that way, you'll have a fighting chance of ridding yourself of the germs faster and getting stuck into training properly when it's passed.
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