I’m supposed to be running the NY marathon on Nov. 1, but have come down with the flu – fever, cough, etc. (I got it from my kids). Based on how I feel, Monday would be the earliest I would anticipate feeling anywhere close to normal and I’m not sure I’ll feel up to running then. My last run was this past Wednesday and the weekend before, I ran 18 miles. I’m not too worried about missing this week because it’s a recovery week, but next weekend, my long run is supposed to be 18 miles and the weekend after that is my 20 miler.
Before getting sick, my training was going very well – I missed only one small run in the past three months (running 5 days a week). I think I’m going to have to make some adjustments, though, to account for the toll this illness is going to take on my lungs. How much training can I miss and still run this race? I’m definitely going to miss this week’s long run (a 12 mile recovery run) and may miss 10-15 miles of mid-week runs this upcoming week. I’m not looking to break any records here and before this came up, had predicted my finishing time between 4:15 and 4:30. I don’t mind going a little slower than that, but I don’t want this to be a walking marathon. This will be my fourth marathon.
Anyone have a similar experience? How much should I be dialing back my training? Is it realistic to still want to run this thing or should I be considering a deferral?
Your only choice right now is to rest until you are completely better. (I hope that happens soon!)
Then, think about what you are going to do. For now just “file it” - tell yourself “when I am better, I will figure out what I can do with my traning.”
REST! REST! REST! REST!
Going back to soon will likely set you back further. Start back slowly when you do.
Here’s hoping I don’t get it, which will be a miracle since I see it every day.
Get as much rest as you can and see how you are doing in a few days. If you really have H1N1 instead of another flu, then wait a week or so and see how you are doing. If you have been training consistently for a few months, this may mean that your race time will be a little slower than if you had not gotten sick, but maybe not either. Personally, I would not defer because you are always going to have something come up during several months of marathon training, and this is not a bad time for something bad to happen because you have already most of your training done and still have plenty of time to recover compeletely before the race. Don’t know if you should take any special precautions on training if it is H1N1 as, like you, I have a JD, not an MD. Hope you and your kids get better quickly.
I don’t think there has been an uptick in “regular” flu yet (OP can check with his local public health office), so if you have a “flu-like illness” (say T > 100 and cough or sore throat this time of year - 50% chance its swine flu.) If you have a positive influenza test - its likely above 95% swine flu (assuming seasonal flu has not started). If its neg. flu test - you’re still near 50% swine flu. If your whole family is sick and has more classic influenza symptoms - you can bump your probablity up toward 70-80%+ even without tests…
Infuenza has been associated with increased risk for coronary artery events or heart attacks. The mechanism is believed related to acute inflammation during the flu ilness. This is why the flu shot/vaccine has been shown to prevent heart attacks. H1N1 is only a bit genetically different from regular flu.
Training thru the flu is a gamble as you will be at increased risk for heart problems then and likely into the future. Don’t train when sick with fever or with chest or cough symptoms. Don’t resume training until symptoms resolve completely.
Your illness should be gone in a week or two allowing time to get ready for NY which is best done at an easy pace anyway (IMO from '01 and '04).
I took one of my kids who is taking a long time to recover (the other recovered quickly) to the pediatrician yesterday. They tested him for flu. It was positive for influenza A, which right now is 99% H1N1 (docs aren’t seeing “regular” flu yet in our area, only H1N1). This is good, because from what they tell me, influenza A is worse than H1N1.
To the rest of the posters, thanks for the helpful comments. Based on a thread posted earlier this week, I’ve been educated on the dangers of running with a fever, so I won’t be going back too soon. I have a feeling my body will tell me what I can and cannot do. I also have a feeling it’s the cough that will linger after all the other symptoms have passed, so we’ll see how much impact that has. As for rest, that is all I’m doing. Really, how many episodes of Law & Order can one person watch:)
Sorry to hear this. I’ll echo what the others have said about rest and add that doing the marathon might not be a good idea at this point. The flu is bad when you get it once but it’s far worse if it comes back a few weeks later. Training when you’re better is probably OK. Moderate workouts will help rebuild your strength. But the marathon will weaken your immune system significantly and put you in danger of a relapse. Even if you feel that you’re back to full strength, there’s no guarantee that the virus is completely gone.
I got it 2 weeks ago. For 1 week, I did NOTHING! Last week I swam a little. Tomorrow I hope to swim and bike a little. Wife just came down with it bad last night.
Rest, and more rest.
Yup, I got it about a month ago (along with everyone else at school) and I still have a lingering sore throat that just won’t go away! I took a good 6 days off, ran 3 miles, and took another 2 days off. Even since then I’ve had to take 1-2 unplanned days off here and there as my body tells me. It’s just not worth it, a lingering flu/sore throat will kill your marathon more than just taking a good week or 2 off now to focus on your and your family’s recovery. Best of luck, I’m playing catch up for NYC too!
My cheap and absolutely unscientific advice is…just rest (ok, there is some science behind that) and drink a lot of miso soup (each time I got the flu and drunk a lot of miso soup, I get the flu for 4 days rather than 5 or 6. Oh, and because I actually like miso soup, I do drink a lot more and it probably helps…
This advice was worth what you paid for
For sympathy sake, or whatever, I agonized until yesterday afternoon about DNS’ing Duke Half. i have been fighting (almost certainly H1N1) flu symptoms. my energy drops like a rock in the afternoons, so i was having a hard time imagining putting in a hard 6 hours at my cruising C pace.
so i slept in this morning. i will be a bit embarrassed about wearing the shirt, but just for a week or so. then i probably will be really glad i rested, so i can bang out a local marathon nov 1.
since you are 6 weeks out, i would just rest solidly and pick up where you left off. unless you are going for money, i say its worth it to protect your health. (thats what i will be repeating to myself over and over tonite thinking about my first DNS …
I’m glad to hear you didn’t do the half. I followed your thread and some of the information there was downright scary. I don’t get really sick all that often and had no idea the serious risks that come with exercising with a fever.
This stoopid flu has hit me hard. I keep waking up thinking today will be the day I don’t have a fever and everyday, I’m disappointed. I’m going to rest (not like I have any other choice) and take it very slow. If I can run the marathon, great. If I can’t, so be it. I’ll just do it next year. NY has a good – albeit expensive – cancellation policy.
I work in a hospital that has seen a LOT of H1N1. We call it the “hinnie” flu. To sum it up in one word: overrated. Lot of media hype, lot if fear. Very little to worry about. I had a teenager say “the news says I’ll probably die, but I don’t think I’m that sick.”
Yes, you should take it seriously. Rest for a week or two, hydrate, etc. You will be FINE.
There must be something about the NY marathon. I got bronchitis 4 weeks out from my race in 2004 (??). I ended up running it anyway, but I was much slower than I had hoped. Still a great experience running a race that big. The only other marathon I had done was a race with about 150 people, so it was quite a change. If it hadn’t been NY, I probably would have skipped the race entirely.
Nothing really you can do now except get better. Once you are better and can train again, you can decide if you think you’ll be healthy enough to race. Then you have to decide if you want to just race for the experience or race for a time.
