Do You Workout With a Cold?

When you have a cold, do you workout the same anyway?

Is it a bad idea to just take Sudafed or whatever, ignore the fact that you have a cold, and just workout as you would if you didn’t have a cold?

depends. as with just about anything, i try to listen to my body as much as I can. if the cold is more severe or accompanied by sleep deprivation, i’ll err on the side of more rest. if it’s just a minor case of morning sniffles and grogginess, often times a good lifting session perks me the hell up and is just what the doctor ordered.

Might working out suppress the immune system at all, thereby making the cold last longer. Might it be like making your body fight a two-front war – repairing your muscles while also fighting off a virus?

Depends - is it a cold? is it flu? is it infection? are you just run down?

The most important thing to do is stay warm and get plenty of fluids.

Prob. not a good idea to exercise heavily, if you must, then drop a lot of volume off. Instead of 5 sets, do 3. Instead of 8 reps, do 6, with less weight. That could be a good stimulating workout.

Yes

[quote]2ms wrote:
Might working out suppress the immune system at all, thereby making the cold last longer. Might it be like making your body fight a two-front war – repairing your muscles while also fighting off a virus?[/quote]

Try using Zicam cold remedy. I swear to God this stuff shortens your cold.

Usually a good rule of thumb to follow is whether the symptoms are simply above the neck or below the neck. Above the neck do a light training session if they’re below the neck don’t train until you are better.

Listen to your body. If you feel like shit, then don’t train. Colds don’t last forever.

If you’re just uncomfortable, but otherwise feel fine, then go lift.

When I have a cold, lifting will sometimes make me feel great, and sometimes it will just be a waste of time since I can’t do much of anything.

I’ve also heard that sometimes intense exercise can spread the germs around the entire body, and lengthen the duration of the infection. I don’t know how true this is, but it’s something to keep in mind.

Err on the side of caution.

I think its way better to work out with a cold than it is to do any sort of cardio with a cold. If you do decide to work out then keep it short and only do maybe 2 compound exercises with your normal high-intensity effort. Save your energy for recovery.

I have a rule (guess I got it from my parents- substitute school for work and you’ll get the gist)

If the cold stops you going to work, then dont train, otherwise away you go. Maybe turn intensity / volume down a little.