I was diagnosed with mono in January (probably got sick in December looking back) and took several months off, and then started to ease back into training - but am STILL having a hard time - if I push hard, the next day my glands are swollen, headache…and wow am I slow! Not that I was ever fast, but am literally running 3-4 mins/mile slower than my usual average with my HR shooting up quite high.
anyone else go through this? will I ever be back to MOP self?
If I’m recalling correctly, it was in the nine month range before I felt normal. Of course, this varies for each person. My big recommendation is obviously lots of sleep and I’d avoid high intensity for a while longer. Take heart; it will come back around.
Also note that even once recovered fully, the speeds will be slower and heart rates higher until your body acclimates to training and you’ve reestablished your base level of fitness.
man mono is the worst
I was in the hospital 3 different times getting fluids because I couldn’t eat due to a swollen throat
.
recovery time for mono is about 3-4 months(so March/April for your case). However, after 3-4 months is when you’re ready to train again-you have to keep in mind how much fitness was lost during that time(research shows mono has a causes significant drop in VO 2 max). You also have to remember that it’s obviously a lot easier to run faster in the winter(when you got sick) compared to spring and summer when it’s warmer. Not only are you trying to get back in shape, you’re also having to acclimatize to heat at the same time. At this point, if your glands are swollen the day after a hard workout you might want to consider a follow up visit to your doctor
I got mono in March of 2010, and it was not fun. I was over the strep throat and ridiculous fatigue in 4-6 weeks, and then started to resume training, but in hindsight, I should have taken more time off. I was able to train for the rest of the year, but I never felt completely normal. I was always tired, struggled to match previous years power numbers or run paces, always felt a little under the weather. It took until late August 2010 for me to feel good again and have any decent performances. I took a lot of time off over the winter 2010-2011 and that seemed to be the ultimate cure.
When I started back into training in 2011, I got a little worried that I was having a mono relapse, but I think it was just fatigue from being really out of shape. 2010 was a tough year and I didn’t want to go through that again, so I was extra sensative to how I was feeling.
My advice would be to just take things day by day. Don’t push it hard. You’re probably going to go through cycles of feeling OK and feeling sick for a few more months before its over. The fitness will come back though.
I had it back in February 2009. It knocked me out for about 4 months, with alot of lost fitness as well. A normal jog got up to 180 hr. I did a race in August, but that was stupidity on my part. After that I just swallowed my pride and started slow workouts for a long time. About 6 months after that I did some light interval work, and by the next season I was back to what felt like 100%.
I hope your situation allows you to recover faster, but my advice (take it for what its worth), is be patient and don’t fret too much if you have to chalk up the season to just get healthy again. You’ll be back.
Helps to hear that others have had a long haul. I have already given up on racing this season - I was supposed to do the Chris G memorial, NYC Tri and all sorts of other races but clearly cannot train at that level let alone race.
I am signed up for a sprint end of august that I am still hopeful to complete (not so much race) and if I can get the mileage in a half marathon in september.
Just hoping that I eventually can really train!!!
oh and I did get a bunch of blood drawn today to check thyroid (I am hypothyroid) and ebv titres
well I just found out I’ve had mono and its almost gone now… I’ve trained through mine (and didn’t even know anything was wrong til blood test came back) and plan to race through it… my Dr says that the high levels of aerobic exersice are what has caused it to be so mild… so maybe just ease into more and the training will help you feel better too
I don’t think it was the activity that made your case mild - you just got lucky…
but I am trying to increase what I am doing…
I had a mono test in May because something didn’t feel right, and my numbers of antibodies were extremely high suggesting a recent infection. Apparently according to my Dr. I was training and racing while with mono and my body had kept it enough controlled that I could “push through it” I thought I was just fatigued from training. Apparently I kicked it a week before collegiate nationals and raced with it, at least by his estimation.
I did definitely have the swollen glands and such but completely ignored it. This was really dumb on my part and not recommended, but what I’m trying to say is that there are many different reactions to the mono virus. Some get very sick and others apparently can continue on in about 4-6 weeks. He also mentioned once you have it there is another strain and it could theoretically happen again. Also extremely stressful environments like a race or project could temporarily flare up the symptoms.
I also post this because I’m very interested in if that was possible. I have heard children sometimes get it and are misdiagnosed. But I don’t know if that describes the high numbers in my test.
there are two antibodies - IgG and IgM. IgG regardless of how high is PAST infection. If the IgM is high that is current or recent. There are some other tests, Early antigen…but if you had high IgM it was current. Else some other virus (CMV…)
yes, there are mild cases of mono and yes there are prolonged cases of mono. I just needed reassurance that other triathletes went through what I am going through and came out the other side!
Took me a year to recover… and I’m not sure I ever really did. I’ve had weird fatigue issues ever since… and that was 35 years ago.
oh snap!!!
I was diagnosed with mono in 1991. Had sickly fatigue for about 1 year, after which I started to feel normal as long as I didn’t try to exercise any significant amount.
For another 2-3 years, I got a strange kind of sick/fatigued feeling whenever I did too much. That sick feeling lasted usually for 1-3 days, depending on how hard I had exercised. (Interestingly, it only seemed to be caused by exercise. Work-related stress, lack of sleep, etc., weren’t a problem.)
I eventually stopped trying to exercise and picked up other hobbies. Got back to exercising a decade later. By that point, the strange mono-like fatigue was gone.
I saw several doctors, had lots of tests run, and the only thing I ever tested positive for was mono.
You will eventually get back to normal. I had a pretty severe case of mono back in April 2008…I couldn’t ride outside until July due to risk of organ damage if I fell. Recovered SLOWLY, and trained as best I could. In June 2009 I finished 5th overall at one of NC’s most competitive local races–my highest overall finish to that point. I spent a long time wondering if I would ever get back to where I was, let alone improve. Patience is a virtue-- if you want to avoid getting discouraged while still working on long-term improvement, do lots of sets based on RPE and do them without a pace clock or an objective measure of output to remind you how much weaker you are post-mono. All you can do is give 100%…it will take time to improve and staring at a watch while you run won’t change that, it will just remind you of how far you have to go.
that is great advice thanks
Just went for a ride outside (central park) did not do Harlem Hill for those that know the loop, and hit my max heart rate on cat hill without really trying to go hard! (usually I cannot even get to max HR on HH). only did 3 loops so as not to push.
this really sucks but glad to know that it will eventually end. and yeah, think I will just run on time and RPE. thanks
okay so i just tested for mono this morning after a solida week of swollen neck/lymph nodes and dramatic fatigue, and the last 2 days of sore throat. i won’t know for sure until tomorrow, but I’m freaking out. I am in the last 2 weeks of Ironman Louisville training, including 120+ mile runs and 18-20 mile long runs. I am racing full distance Vineman Aquabike in 2 days. My coach has me taking off today and tomorrow before the race on Sat. I keep reading on this thread that I should stop training, but I have Kona aspirations and I’m trained up with a better fitness level than I’ve had before my last Kona qualifier.
My heart is into the upcoming Ironman. Can I train for 2 more weeks, taper and race? Or should I take off the next month and race? Or should I not race Vineman this weekend because I need to rest first?
AHHHH!
First time I felt weak for almost a year.
Second time (last September) it only took about 5-6 weeks to get back to normal.
if you have mono and you race you’ll likely be out of Kona contention this year, next and possibly forever.
WTF is wrong with you and your coach? Mono is serious.