#running sick

I've been coming down with a cold the past couple of days and finally this morning it hit me like a semi-truck.  I got up at my usual time and while I was a bit slower to get ready - I still got on my running clothes and headed out to run 7 miles.  I wasn't feeling too well, but I kept telling myself - just get out there and you'll be fine.  I got out there, but I wasn't fine.  Actually, I felt worse and struggled through 5 miles in 41 minutes before I called it quits.  Should I have even gone out in the first place?  What about the old adage that you can "sweat out a cold"? Rest before running?

My belief (and I'm not a doctor, so this purely based on my own experience) is that you know your body better than anyone else and know when you should and shouldn't be running when your sick.  Normally, I feel better after running, when I have a cold, so I usually try to just get out there and get the legs turning.  Today, was different and as much as I kept going - my body was quick to tell me to stop and take a rest day.  I should have listened.

I've read quite a bit about exercising and sickness and from what I've read (please see disclaimer above) you really can't sweat out a cold.  What you can do is get your body moving and by exercising you'll release chemicals in the brain (serotonin and dopamine) that help make you feel better - at least this is my understanding. If you're really sick, then you need to allow your body time to rest and fight off the infection. Any benefit you get from running will be negated by your body having a harder time fighting the infection as it has to repair itself from your workout.

I'm very dedicated to getting out there and running my mileage each week and getting in quality runs.  I hate missing days and falling short on my mileage.  Still, if you're sick - really sick - taking a day off or two will be more beneficial than pushing through.  Today was a day that I should have taken off instead of trying to get my workout in.  I didn't have a good workout and ended up feeling worse than I did before I started.  You know yourself better than anyone else, so you'll know if you're too sick to run. If you are, then take the day off and come back stronger the following day (or days).

I ended up going to the doctor today and found out that I have mild bronchitis, which isn't surprising considering I have asthma and a cold will have a tendency to become bronchitis in asthmatics (especially in the winter).  Today was a day I should have stayed in and rested and not just tried to "sweat the cold out".  Tomorrow I'll be resting and hoping I can get healthy to get in some quality runs in the near future!

Have you gone running when sick?  How sick must you be to not run?  Great questions we ask when we are sick, like I am right now.  I didn’t go out running today because I’ve got a soar throat, I feel congested and I’m feeling a bit warm.  I figured it would just make it worse if I did go out today.  On the other hand in the past I had gone out running to get better from symptoms such as this.  And it has worked!

According to articles from Runner’s World, "Should You Run When You're Sick?" and Alex Hutchinson’s from the Globe and Mail, "Should I exercise if I have the flu?" describe when you can and shouldn’t run.  They say that if you have any symptoms below your neck you should stay home and anything above such as running nose, sneezing, and scratchy throat it’s cool to hit the road with caution.  I guess maybe I’ve done the right thing by not having laced up my shoes today! 

I get sick very easily if I’m not watching my diet.  I’ve been a vegetarian for over a decade now and I find that I need to consume food often especially when I’m training.  I cannot by any means miss a meal, as I will get sick.  In fact I believe that is the case why I’m sick today.  After yesterday’s run I waited 3 hours before I ate, weakening my immune system.  It is recommended that you eat something within 30 - 45 minutes after a run.  At least rehydrate!!!

Training too much can also cause your immune system to weaken and be more susceptible to illnesses as the Runner’s World article indicates.  “For average runners, the dividing line seems to be 60 miles a week, according to David Nieman, Ph.D., of the Human Performance Laboratory at Appalachian State University. Nieman conducted the largest study ever done on this question by examining 2,300 runners who competed in the 1987 Los Angeles Marathon. "The odds of getting sick were six times higher than normal after the marathon," says Nieman, "and those who ran 60 miles a week or more doubled their chance of getting sick." The illnesses were of the upper respiratory tract, including sinus infections. Nieman says there's no doubt these findings are still applicable to runners today. He's also used himself as a test case: When Nieman trained up to 90 miles a week, he constantly battled sore throats. When he dropped his weekly mileage below 60, the symptoms stopped.”

After taking to an adventurous weekend of plateauing Halfdome in Yosemite and stringing through 2000 year-old sequioas, I found myself attacked by allergies and then brought to a halt with a massive cold/flu virus.

It brought to mind how runners itch for the trail constantly...even when you are sick. It kills me that I have not been able to run the past few days, absolutely sickens me! It reminds me of the passion and mindset runners display - the yearning for achievement and wanting to keep pushing.That feeling is memorizing and makes me feel alive - who wants to give that up?! 

That's why, when ill, it's best to stick with the "neck rule".

David Nieman, Ph.D., who heads the Human Performance Laboratory at Appalachian State University, and has run 58 marathons and ultras, uses the "neck rule." Symptoms below the neck (chest cold, bronchial infection, body ache) require time off, while symptoms above the neck (runny nose, stuffiness, sneezing) don't pose a risk to runners continuing workouts. This view is supported by research done at Ball State University by Tom Weidner, Ph.D., director of athletic training research. In one study, Weidner took two groups of 30 runners each and inoculated them with the common cold. One group ran 30 to 40 minutes every day for a week. The other group was sedentary. According to Weidner, "the two groups didn't differ in the length or severity of their colds." In another study, he found that running with a cold didn't compromise performance. He concluded that running with a head cold--as long as you don't push beyond accustomed workouts--is beneficial in maintaining fitness and psychological well-being.