I Tried to Outrun the Flu (The Flu Won)
Denial
After months of consistent training by being diligent with nutrition, sleep, and recovery, that evil demon has come to collect his due: you get sick.
And not just the sniffles and the hacking up of some colorful specimen in the morning. The full-body chills, back bending and chest rattling coughs and sneezes that make you both exhausted yet sleeping impossible.
This is me currently. And what did I do the first morning of symptoms? I chose Denial. I got up and ran 6 miles on my treadmill anyway. It was like running slow motion underwater with strobe lights living in my eyeballs. Oddly enough, my body moved ok. When I had finished, though, I ACHED. Like bone-deep aching. And then my fever returned and my muscles started to spasm, so I chose to cry.
Do as I Say, Not as I Do
Learn from me, my friends. I am now on Day 3 of sickness and have spent 90% of the time lying down. On Day 1, I contemplated working on a spiffy new weekly training plan structure for myself that would inspire me to come back strong. As I thought of the training, though, my body’s energy evaporated even more. On Day 2, I thought about working on mindset and becoming more mentally resilient. But this just made the strobe lights living in my eyes flash faster. On the morning of today, Day 3, I contemplated working on toe and ankle mobility. Then I got sad and thought, “What’s the point?”
I write this blog post in a weakened, vulnerable state. But I have arrived at something most critical when it comes to being a runner and dealing with sickness. It’s OK to not work on anything running related and just rest your body and your mind. I’ve decided to use the pre-Christmas sickness misery to let the little niggles that I’ve noticed ease up (little bit of calf tightness and low back soreness), and let my mind have a flippin’ rest.
The 3 movies that I have watched thus far are:
1) Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery
2) Something really awful with Danny DeVito obsessing over his Christmas lights being seen from space
3) Love the Coopers
I have also watched the unfortunate shoulder pad saga that is The Golden Girls, and my most wholesome programming, Escape to the Country.
Just (Don't) Do It
If you are trying to decide whether to run through sickness or rest, let me give you some facts:
• If you have a fever, running makes your fever worse and causes your heart to work harder. This can lead to heart palpitations.
• Your body’s resources are trying to combat your sickness. By running, those resources are used to support that activity instead.
• If you have body aches, running is going to be very unpleasant, and those aches will feel like knives if you don’t cut it out.
• If you have a sudden coughing/sneezing spell while running, I have come to the conclusion that it is very possible to pull your back.
One of the biggest reasons that I think deserves its own paragraph is calorie related. Since being sick, I have eaten 2 grapes and a bowl of Wheaties with some raisins. It’s been 3 days. I have had absolutely no hunger sensations. This in itself is alarming, but it’s actually fairly normal for your body to release chemicals that suppress hunger if you’re in a bad, feverish way. Your body doesn’t want to work on digesting your food as well as fighting the sickness demon. In the past, I’ve wanted ALL THE FOOD. So this is new. However, I am trying to drink plenty of fluids. But let me tell you, I am going to need to eat a substantial amount before I get back to running. Basically, if you have lost hunger sensations and are on less than 500 calories for not one day but multiple, then DON’T RUN.
If you are sick and you do have hunger, go for it, eat. The hunger sensations may be your body letting you know it actually needs more energy. It’s a tough call, but listen to your body!
The "Well-Oiled Machine"
Being sick is awful. You really start to question whether you’ll feel good ever again. You wonder whether the fitness you’ve gained is gone forever. You ask whether food will ever again be appealing. I get it. And I’m here to tell you that it’s ok to not think about anything running related for a while and focus on healing. Consider professional athletes. If they’re sick, they don’t hop on a stationary bike to force some kind of fitness even when they’re so miserable they can hardly keep their eyes open. Instead, they take days, weeks, if needed, and rest until they’re better. Act like the “well-oiled machine” that you dream of becoming: if something’s not working properly on the machine, rest.
I hope this has resonated with you. It probably isn’t entirely coherent, but I’m having a decent spell of being able to see without the party lights and cranial vice grip. If you want empathy and kindness through all phases of life and running, then hit Enquire Now. I want to show you that being kind to yourself will always lead to better running than pushing yourself through pain and sickness.
