If You Have A Fever It’s Best To Skip That Workout

Conventional medical wisdom was  once "feed a fever and starve a cold".  Not sure if that still holds up but with all the people in the Yakima valley who have or are still suffering cold symptoms, it's reasonable to ask if the old advice about "sweating out a cold," is good counsel.

In other words, is it smart to exercise when you're feeling sick?

Time magazine looked into it interviewing David Nieman, professor and director of the Human Performance Lab at Appalachian State University who says yes and no depending.  Exercise is a good way to amp up your immune system in an effort to prevent illness, but it's not a great idea to exercise once you're already sick.

If your symptoms include sinus congestion, sore throat, cough exercise doesn't really help or hurt however, if you actually have the flu or other fever-causing systemic infections, then experts say exercise is a bad idea and in some rare cases, a long lasting bad idea.

Back in the 1990s in Australia, some athletes who continued to exercise while suffering from flu developed a form of chronic fatigue syndrome that, in some cases, lasted for several years.

Best advice is that you should wait a full week after being sick before you get back into exercise. (Time)