got creamed by the flu last week. here is a breakdown:
wed morning at 4am i wake up with a cough. decide to stay awake and head to the pool for a swim…
coughed all day long and decided NOT to bike on the trainer for 1.5 hours like i was supposed to (looking back, that was a smart move)
over the next 3 days (thurs-sat evening/sunday morning) i had my ass handed to me by a pretty nasty flu bug… i had it all… fever, chills, headache, weakness, dry cough… miserable
sunday i FINALLY start to kinda feel like i am rounding the corner…
today, monday (02/18/2008) i am still feeling a little blah, but i know the worst is passed me… you know what i am talking about: not feeling 100%, but you know you are over that hump/broke the fever kind of thing…
here is my problem… i have wanted to start this 12-week program to prepare me for the 1/2 IM i am doing in June for three weeks now, but i keep getting hit with things like colds/family emergency/flu… i really want to get this thing going because i feel like all the base building i did over the off-season is getting lost. i have missed NUMEROUS days over the last few weeks due to illness etc…
i am supposed to ride for an hour tonight and i am wondering if i should just go a couple more days or slowly get back into this… my nose is still congested, slight cough but it is dry, and there is a little clamminess here and there, but overall, i am feeling better… any suggestions?
btw, wed morning was the last workout i did… i know, i know… the horror…
I had the flu and trained right through it. Not good. I was caught up in the 100 runs challenge so I simply couldn’t take days off. I would have been out. There were days when I was “running” 11:00 miles and it was killing me.
Take the time you need to recover fully. It’s worth it.
Sucks! I had it too and it has been 12 days, still not 100%…probably because I kept thinking I was “better” and throwing in a workout…just wiped me out…my advice would be hold off until you are like 90% better, then start up again…it is relentless…AND, I had a flu shot this year!! Good luck
It’s always tough to know if you had the flu or not. Many times a bad cold will make you think you have the flu. I wonder what I’m getting over.
Thursday - woke up with some chest congestion, went out for some short 10 minute threshold intervals on the TT bike in the AM, tempo riding in the PM, felt totally drained
Friday - sick as a dog - chest congestion, muscle aches, fever, … felt better by evening so I thought I was all good
Saturday - woke up with a fever again, more sore muscles, started feeling better as the day went on
Sunday - another morning and another fever, just couldn’t shake it. Again was feeling better as the day went on
Monday - woke up without a fever (yippee) but no energy. Went out for a ride this morning. Wanted to do a few hours of tempo but was totally drained. Barely managed 150 watts and 17 mph for an hour. Ears were in incredible pain from sinus buildup or something, some coughing. Felt chilled but no return of the fever.
I’ll probably try another hour this afternoon of just easy riding. Wife already told me to stay home from work Tuesday (last Thursday I took as a vacation day, call in sick Friday, today is a holiday). I don’t want to pass this on to my colleagues. It really wiped me out (positive of this thing - I got a BUNCH of sleep). I need a successful, hard workout Tuesday and/or Wednesday as I’ve got road races I want to do this coming weekend. My 3 day weekend was real lousy.
ok, taking it easy a couple more days sounds like the safe plan… here is my next question then… i have been putting in 6-9 hour weeks for about a year and half now with my longer weeks just recently completed (was building up a sound base over the off-season in order to handle upcoming weeks of 10-16 hours etc… for the 70.3. gradual build of course)… i have already lost 4 total days of working out (normally 2 adays each day)… how much of that base that i have worked hard for (well, worked hard for, for me that is) will be lost of this coming week? whats the general rule when it comes to fitness lost???
i know pro’s can go a couple weeks and hardly lose a thing…
but for an age-grouper like myself, how much am i getting set back?
PS I got the flu shot this year too, but supposedly, they dropped the ball on the strain this year with the flu shots… or something like that…
It’s always tough to know if you had the flu or not. Many times a bad cold will make you think you have the flu. I wonder what I’m getting over.
Thursday - woke up with some chest congestion, went out for some short 10 minute threshold intervals on the TT bike in the AM, tempo riding in the PM, felt totally drained
Friday - sick as a dog - chest congestion, muscle aches, fever, … felt better by evening so I thought I was all good
Saturday - woke up with a fever again, more sore muscles, started feeling better as the day went on
Sunday - another morning and another fever, just couldn’t shake it. Again was feeling better as the day went on
Monday - woke up without a fever (yippee) but no energy. Went out for a ride this morning. Wanted to do a few hours of tempo but was totally drained. Barely managed 150 watts and 17 mph for an hour. Ears were in incredible pain from sinus buildup or something, some coughing. Felt chilled but no return of the fever.
I’ll probably try another hour this afternoon of just easy riding. Wife already told me to stay home from work Tuesday (last Thursday I took as a vacation day, call in sick Friday, today is a holiday). I don’t want to pass this on to my colleagues. It really wiped me out (positive of this thing - I got a BUNCH of sleep). I need a successful, hard workout Tuesday and/or Wednesday as I’ve got road races I want to do this coming weekend. My 3 day weekend was real lousy.
sounds to me like you had the flu as well…
after doing some research, it seems i had the flu… if it WASNT the flu and i was just sick… then i never ever ever want the flu, because it must truly be a motherfcuker!!!
after doing some research, it seems i had the flu… if it WASNT the flu and i was just sick… then i never ever ever want the flu, because it must truly be a motherfcuker!!!
Last year I know I had the flu - I didn’t have a high fever, but I was just totally wiped out. So the symptoms this year were a little different (not as bad thankfully), but I guess I’ll claim having the flu again.
I got it 2 weeks ago. Stayed in the house for 7 days. Did not exercise for 11. I am now on day 17, I still have yet to get any speed back.
I still cough alot. I did get in 23 hours of training during the last week, but all of it was crappy super slow stuff. But, figure it was better than nothing.
I tried some stuff at day 7 and paid the price by being down for another 3 days.
So, I have already missed 2 paid races. I have lowered my sights since the flu has won. Oh well, compared to issues others have,
this is nothing.
I’m on day 15 myself and may try to run or bike on the trainer tomorrow. I’m starting to feel ‘somewhat’ normal again. Sheesh this one was bad.
I had the high fever but late last week my system went ‘purge’ mode and I couldn’t eat for 2days.
My wife came down with pneumonia and the Doc said it’ll be a month before she’ll feel normal. It was a bit scary as her fever was at 105.2
Ugh, Your definitely not alone. I don’t know where you live, but here in the Chicago area it has been miserable all winter. I am getting over the flu myself so I feel your pain. I think rest is the key. The day you really feel ready…take one more day off. Take care.
I do not know what lost means, but all I know is I worked my butt off for the last 4-5 months like you,
had great times in races, and now, everything I am doing is SUPER slow. Just no energy.
Oh well, good reason to just enjoy the social aspects of this sport. If it does not rain,
and I do not relapse, will try the Davis sprint race on Sunday and see how poorly I do.
They say it is good to let it go so you can build up again. Guess we were given a gift?
I do not know what lost means, but all I know is I worked my butt off for the last 4-5 months like you,
had great times in races, and now, everything I am doing is SUPER slow. Just no energy.
Oh well, good reason to just enjoy the social aspects of this sport. If it does not rain,
and I do not relapse, will try the Davis sprint race on Sunday and see how poorly I do.
They say it is good to let it go so you can build up again. Guess we were given a gift?
Dave
if this was a gift, i need the receipt so i can return it… worst goddamn gift i have ever gotten…
Ugh, Your definitely not alone. I don’t know where you live, but here in the Chicago area it has been miserable all winter. I am getting over the flu myself so I feel your pain. I think rest is the key. The day you really feel ready…take one more day off. Take care.
maryland area (baltimore/DC region)
I agree. I have never gotten a flu shot in the past, but sure am thinking about doing it for next year.
What is scarey is just knowing how easily a “bug” can impact so many folks.
What is weird is how some of us got it but others did not.
All I can say was this was a serious flu and maybe some of you guys are pushing it when you should be resting and recovering. I did nothing until 2 full days after the fever which was about 7 days. Then I just did a light walk for a few days. Then slowly increased some easy trainer workouts. Today at day 14 I had my first hard ride and I feel fine. So try to rein in your OCD tendencies and rest and recover fully before launching into full scale workouts.
I hope your right on the time line. I’ve been in triple digit fevers for the last 5 days and it’s just kicking my butt and the real pain is that the rest of the family has it too. No rest for the wicked I’m kind of glad that I’m not the only feeling this frustration of losing work out time. I figured my prep work for CDA was coming along just fine but now I’m getting worried about how much I’m losing by staying house bound as the race day approaches.
I’m kind of glad that I’m not the only feeling this frustration of losing work out time. I figured my prep work for CDA was coming along just fine but now I’m getting worried about how much I’m losing by staying house bound as the race day approaches.