Cold and Flu Season

Cold and Flu season is here people!

If you’ve been keeping up with me, you know that I have been in an epic battle with the cold monster for the past few days. Imagine someone sticking a frosting cone in your ear and filling it up with a nice, thick butter cream frosting. That’s how I feel right now. I know, I know, always relating it back to food.

Speaking of food, I had some delicious eats on Sunday. At SOHO, I got an entire loaf of bread as a “sample” from one of the booths. I love samples.

Pumpkin bread with cream cheese

After I ate, I wrote a post and went back to bed. That head frosting was really killin’ me.

I ended up taking a second nap later in the day because I was feeling so terrible. I noticed that as soon as I stop buzzing around and being busy, the sickness hits me like a ton of bricks. I do not like it.

I was of no help in making dinner, but I had an excuse. My mom made some yummy barbeque chicken with red potatoes and sautéed squash and onions.

Obviously, I have not worked out in a few days, making me feel double yuck. However, I did do some research about working out when you’re sick and this is what I have come up with:

The general rule is that if your symptoms are above the neck, you are good to go with working out. Exercise works your lymph nodes, which process the toxins in your blood. If they are below the neck, you should rest up. If you do decide to work out, take it at a much lower intensity than you are used to. You don’t want to drain your body of the energy you need to get better.

Of course, above all else, you should listen to your body. This is something I have trouble with, because I think, I can’t afford to miss a few days of working out! But really guys, you have to rest up. My Lovey has been telling me that I need to take it easy and I have been hesitantly complying.

So if you are trying to decide whether you should work out, assess your symptoms and if you are still unsure, listen to your body. Ask yourself, do I even have the energy to walk around the block? If not, park it. You don’t want to exhaust yourself into a longer bout of sickness.

Stay warm, keep drinking that tea, rest up, and don’t let a stupid cold get you down during this wonderful holiday season!

Here are some sites I found about working out when you’re sick:

• CNN Health
• Women's Health
• Mayo Clinic