Constant colds and chest infections

Si C

It seems I cannot go more than 2 weeks at the moment without copping another cold or chest infection. I get well...then a hard ride almost gaurantee's another chest problem a few days later.

I had a winter training plan to try and have a go at a few club 10's and maybe even a go-race event next year...but it seems the cold doesn't agree with me (wimp). Does anyone else suffer this? If so how can I train through the winter?

phil s

I'd imagine you are conning yourself into thinking you've recovered and then go out and ride too hard - vicious circle. In the winter especially I stay the hell away from anyone who's sniffling, coughing or in any way looking contagious, I wash my hands frequently and I try not to touch things like door handles in public if I can help it. Paranoid? Well, I rarely get ill.

xover_runner

Glad somebody started this one as I was gong to ask what I assume is this perennial favourite "When should I resume training after a flu virus". I had a heavy cold from about Dec 15th, it hung around for a while but by Sunday 21st I felt OK and did 80mins L3 which went really well and then did 60mins L2 on Dec 23rd. I thought this was Ok, not recovery stuff, but equally not a 4 hour group ride. By Xmas Day I was suffering with what I think was full flu (cold, cough, fever, aches and pains) spent most of Xmas Day evening and Boxing Day in bed and only this morning feel recovered. Question is how much longer do I gve it to avoid further repeats (like the OP)

woody-som

give yourself at least 2weeks rest, it takes longer to recover than you think, even when you feel well. I know, I've had colds,chest infections that have stayed, then gone, but foolishly done some running,swimming or cycling,after a week of feeling better and the cold,chest infection returns. REST you will not regret it in the long run.

jimycooper

i get a chest infection on the monday before christmas from a longer, harder and colder ride than im used to and was in bed for the whole of christmas. feel pretty much better now but going to leave it till the weekend to ride again. i had the same thing before and rode the day i felt better and i got it even worse. so leave it a week or so after you feel ok at least.

yogi

Nother one here! Got a chest infection a couple of weeks ago, thought I'd recovered and went out on a fast nightime training ride. Over xmas I had slight irritation in the chest but still trained for 2 one-and-half-hour rides round Richmond Park, now I'm back home really ill and having to visit the doctor.

Stupid really, I normally lay-off completely when ill but your mind doesn't want to loose any hard earned fitness. Lesson learn't.

scapaslow

Yet another - i 've got a pleuritic chest infection which has been extremely unpleasant. This came on after a nasty bout of a cold virus. I'm in no fit shape to contemplate getting back on the bike anytime soon, alas and will just need to wait it out which is extremely frustrating especially with the decent weather right now.

In some ways, i blame the turbo for making me feeling run down - there's just something about it that makes we want to push harder than last time - every time. I'll need to learn to use it more judiciously in future.

I'll maybe try the Olive leaf extract someone mentioned recently to ward off future ills. Worth a try.

Si C

I thought that I was completely over the last chest infection. Then tried a first club 10 TT on Boxing day, and here I am ....worse than before.

Maybe I will just try and avoid the really cold days,bring the turbo inside, and up the gym spinning to 2 classes a week.

ConsciousPilot

phil s wrote:

I stay the hell away from anyone who's sniffling, coughing or in any way looking contagious, I wash my hands frequently and I try not to touch things like door handles in public if I can help it. Paranoid? Well, I rarely get ill.

+1

ut_och_cykla

Repeated colds are a sign you are run down I suspect. Get a doctor to check you don't have cold/exercise induced astma - more common than you realise and easily treated?
Also make sure you are eating as well as you can afford, plenty of C & B vitamins and Zinc and enough pritein to meet your needs (protein as in meat/fish dairy produce or veggie equivalents) Its not just for muscles but also for enzymes and hormones used in 'running' teh body including fightiong off colds and stuff.
Get plenty of sleep.
Don't catch a chill after exercising - you are more susceptableto germs immediately after a hard session.
Avoid gaggles of sneezers etc, wash hands etc as suggested.
Love you rbody - you only have one and it has to last a long time!

mrushton

ut_och_cykla wrote:

Repeated colds are a sign you are run down I suspect. Get a doctor to check you don't have cold/exercise induced astma - more common than you realise and easily treated?
Also make sure you are eating as well as you can afford, plenty of C & B vitamins and Zinc and enough pritein to meet your needs (protein as in meat/fish dairy produce or veggie equivalents) Its not just for muscles but also for enzymes and hormones used in 'running' teh body including fightiong off colds and stuff.
Get plenty of sleep.
Don't catch a chill after exercising - you are more susceptableto germs immediately after a hard session.
Avoid gaggles of sneezers etc, wash hands etc as suggested.
Love you rbody - you only have one and it has to last a long time!

+ 1 to the above advice plus taking Echinacea, garlicetc may help. Fresh fruit and veg, good fruit juice and more protein. Avoid constant stress and stay away from infected people if possible. You cannot wash your hands enough. Look around at your fellow workers. They'll be sneezing/coughing into their hands then touching handles,keyboards,phones, picking their nose/ears etc. my partner keeps alcohol gel on her desk at work and avoids touchig as much as possible those items that are shared eg kettles. You may have good personal hygiene but don't assume others do. Avoid over training.

timestar

A word of caution, a lot of the "science" surrounding taking various supplements to prevent and/or reduce the severity of colds etc. is at best dubious. Latest thinking on Vitamin C now refutes much of the original evidence behind this and most people take way, way below the dosage that was originally used. Zinc has been shown to reduce the severity of cold symptoms only for SOME people. The clinical evidence for garlic is poor. If you eat a healthy diet then most people do not really need supplements, particularly as many vitamins/minerals cannot be stored by the body and so are simply excreted.

ut_och_cykla

Quite right timestar - but they MIGHT be valid starting points for some people. Personally I was very sceptical but have experienced good benefits from B & C vitamin supplements as well as Zinc and ensuring my protein intake is at least 1g per kg per day which is hard to do on a lower calorie intake. (not cycling much right now!) And a healthy diet for many people is actually not as healthy as they believe with fruit languishing on shelves for weeks, meat and grains farmed on micro nutrient poor soils etc.

liversedge

it might be worth remembering that there is a significant outbreak of flu across much of britain. pot luck is how you avoid it. if you have kids, well, youre doomed!!

simon_e

ut_och_cykla wrote:

a healthy diet for many people is actually not as healthy as they believe with fruit languishing on shelves for weeks, meat and grains farmed on micro nutrient poor soils etc.

Some of this is difficult to quantify but I agree. Too much "fresh" food has been stored for months - NZ apples, for example. UK-sourced veg can be in storage for ages before arriving on supermarket shelves bagged up with that super-scrubbed-clean appearance. They do something (I forget what) to meat cuts to make them look red and then seal them in those plastic containers with some inert gas. Yuck.

The research I've read about supplements to prevent/recover from colds is contradictory and inconclusive (including an article in the latest Singletrack mag). However, Vit C and Zinc in particular have been shown to have some benefit, so it may be worth trying these or multivitamins. I wonder how much Vitamin C is left in juice from concentrate after it has been dehydrated, rehydrated, treated, packed and shipped.

Certain foods can impede absorption of vitamins and minerals including coffee, alcohol and highly processed foods. I'd suggest that the further something is from its natural state the less goodness it contains so try eating more apples and bananas, fewer Quality Street and pies.

Diet aside, good rest is vital to recovery. And full recovery is essential before you go out and put in some effort training. Training will itself impede recovery. Strain on the heart from hard exercise while ill can kill you.

phelim1

all those tips are well and good, but if you have a kids especially babies/toddlers you cannot avoid colds and sniffles at this time of year. plus add in disturbed sleep and this is a receipe for colds and flu.

hazychris

Try "First Defence" - http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article1081226.ece - seems to work for me.

Cheers,
Chris

woody-som

I'm going to try a daily table of Vit C (1000mg) and Zinc,. Recently read in a medical paper that active people need about 3000-6000mg vit c per day, 25-50mg zinc, so a long way above the current multi vitamin tablets.

garetjax

http://www.flammerouge.je/content/3_fac ... health.htm

useful read

liversedge

garetjax wrote:

http://www.flammerouge.je/content/3_factsheets/constant/health.htm

useful read

"Don't get in from a long ride on Saturday then place your gloves on the radiator, ready to be nice and warm for your Sunday ride. The germs and nasal bacteria left over from your ride will sit, incubate and multiply a squillion times overnight."

Oops. :oops:

simon_e

phelim1 wrote:

all those tips are well and good, but if you have a kids especially babies/toddlers you cannot avoid colds and sniffles at this time of year. plus add in disturbed sleep and this is a receipe for colds and flu.

If you try to mitigate this by e.g. resting as well as possible and feeding yourself lots of good food you are at least improving your chance of resisting the bugs or recovering more quickly. As supplements go Echinacaea is one of the best.

I'd suggest that those with pre-school and school age children get more viruses than with babies.

bahzob

hazychris wrote:

Try "First Defence" - http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article1081226.ece - seems to work for me.

Cheers,
Chris

Seconded. I started "serious" training a couple of years ago and as part of this started using First Defence regularly. Previously I had as many colds as the next person. Since then not one. This despite risk factors of regular international travel, frequent meetings in stuffy rooms where 1/2 have coughs/sneezes and (since July 2008) railway commute. Wife/children think I am just obsessive so they dont use, but do get colds...

Cost works out around £10 per month. Money well spent I think. (no I dont work for P&G).

scapaslow

Bahzob, do you use First Defence everyday? The info that comes with it says to use when you feel the first signs of a cold coming on. I'm not sure it is intended for daily use though it would make some sense. I wonder if there are any problems associated with daily use? It's marketed as reducing the symptoms of a cold and getting over it quicker rather than as a preventative.

My understanding of it is that it coats the nasal cavity with a jelly like substance which makes it difficult for viruses to attach and hence multiply. It's also acidic which viruses don't like and stimulates nasal secretion to wash away the virus.

So it seems strange that you are supposed to wait until you know you have a virus before use if it can create a barrier in the first place?

I've just bought some to try - can't say its pleasant! But i'll give it a good try anyway.

Another link to some more cold fighting possibilities....
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/health-news/how-to-beat-the-bugs-420453.html

hazychris

scapaslow, I tend to use it at the very first sign of a cold, and as it takes hold. I find that colds seem shorter, and don't tend to make it as far down as my chest (like the head cold I have at the moment, it's mercifully stayed above the neck). I've had noticably fewer colds since using it as and when - even with an eight year old offspring, who seems to be in a state of permasnot!

The other mode is defensive mode - a spray before you get on an aeroplane this time of year is a great insurance policy (off skiing on Sunday, so it will be a must!).

Cheers,
Chris

bahzob

scapaslow wrote:

Bahzob, do you use First Defence everyday? The info that comes with it says to use when you feel the first signs of a cold coming on. I'm not sure it is intended for daily use though it would make some sense. I wonder if there are any problems associated with daily use? It's marketed as reducing the symptoms of a cold and getting over it quicker rather than as a preventative.

Yes use it every day. Can't say that I have noticed any side effects/problems.