Keep Gettin' Sick After I Have Intense Workout

This has been happening to me more and more in the past 2 years and I can’t seem to figure it out. Every time I feel I have a decent workout where I’ve pushed myself pretty good, but not extreme, I get a cold. I take Greens +, I take vitamins, I usually eat an Apple, an Orange and a Banana every day and I don’t eat junk. It used to be that I never got sick, but now, it just seems like my tolerance for the stress exercise puts on my body has gone down.

I’ve never been a fan of cardio and in the last year started doing kettlebell workouts to try and get my conditioning up. I also moved, so I’m doing bodyweight exercises and suspension exercises (like TRX but using the blast straps from elitefts) instead of any barbell movements. I’ve tried to take things like Rodeola to help but still not getting the resistance I’m looking for. I haven’t felt any decrease in my hormones, but that’s subjective and I haven’t been tested.

I’m just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on supplements that might help or macronutrients that get quickly depleted by exercise and are directly related to immunity. Thanks, everyone!

Joe

What’s your calorie intake? I bet that you aren’t eating quite enough to recover from the harder training sessions.

You can sometimes forestall this type of reaction by supplementing with glutamine. But plain old food is better. And more of it.

As skidmark said and drink lots. Fluid is as important as food.

It looks like you’ve just joined T-Nation! Welcome!

I can’t remember if you said you have a training log, but if you don’t, I might suggest you keep one, if only to know whether this is really like clockwork and not just a coincidence. If it is, you can do the things mentioned above, i.e. increase H2O and caloric intake, and I would also suggest you supplement with natural remedies/supplements before your intense workout days. I.e. Zinc tablets, echinacea/goldenseal extracts, both of which you can get at a natural health store. That is just my two cents, I prefer the natural route.

Edit: Something else has occurred to me, how much sleep are you getting? Aim for 8 hours per night. Shame on me, but I have gotten less than adequate sleep the past couple of days, and I feel like DEATH. Lifting is hard on your body, poor sleeping habits can make you feel like shit AND lower your immunity. Something to think about.