Much to my chagrin, my training efforts have been blunted as I have come down with bronchitis.
I felt a bit of sniffle after my long run last weekend but I continued to train. In fact the day after running my 21k, I was doing my weight lifting, then the next day I was back to my sprints, then hill repeats on the Wednesday. The sniffle turned into a runny nose, then very quickly an excruciatingly sore throat, an uncontrollable cough and a low grade fever.
I am on antibiotics now so I should be fine, but I am pretty sure I have lost at least two weeks of good training progress. The rule I always worked with was if I am sick but I don't have a fever and it's above the neck, I can keep on exercising. Obviously, this backfired on me.
Many times as athletes we force ourselves to push through the sniffles, the stiffness, the aches and pains and the fatigue. This mental discipline after all is what makes us get to the next level and achieve our fitness goals. However, I think we need to also learn to listen to our bodies.
I read somewhere that you are six times more susceptible to upper respiratory tract infections after a marathon. Translation - take a few days off after a long run and incorporate daily a good multivitamin and possibly a herbal immune supplement. If you are serious about your training the best solution is not to get sick at all.
I will now be taking garlic, echinacea and vitamin C in addition to my daily multivitamin!
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