Working Out When Sick? Rest Can Be Your Friend! <3
January 12, 2017 -
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Disclaimer: ohhh disclaimer — I am not saying in this post to take a week off of work or just pause life and all responsibilities all together while you get better — unfortunately with social media my words can be taken differently based on someones interpretation of them.
I absolutely loved visiting home for the Holidays but it never fails…the past 2 years I got a nasty head cold! I think my body literally goes..hm, you’re home so you can chill & I’m just gonna get you sick so you really have to chill chill.
I got hit with the sore throat and nasty nasty head cold that took me down for the count multiple days and out of the gym for over a week.
Now, I just so happened to be home on vacation for the Holiday’s with my family & husband whenever I got sick … so yes, I was able to rest BUT what I am simply saying with my post was that it’s OK to take a break from the gym for a day to a week if you need to heal and then get back into it once you feel better.
My goal is to always share my experiences honestly and hopefully help others not beat themselves up for taking a day or two off from training to get healthy.
I wanted to focus on healing, being able to spend time with the family, & not exerting more in terms of training to make matters worse and reallyyyy take me down longer.
I got an Instagram message during that time from an awesome girl who asked why I took a week off from the gym and I just explained that I was not 100% and wanted to give my body a rest from training while it was working on busting through my cold.
She replied with how nice it was to see that we are all human & take breaks.
It’s so important to listen to our bodies guys…trust me, I used to be the queen of push push push with my workouts when I was sick and/or rundown … but guess what came from that? Never getting better because my body didn’t have a chance to RECOVER.
Taking a week off from the gym used to freak me out … seriously… as if my whole world and body would change over that time. Have you ever felt that way too?
Heather and I did a whole post on taking a #RESTWEEK over a year ago to challenge ourselves to take some time off and realize that we would survive.
What always ends up happening when I take breaks? I feel better, my body focuses on recovering, I eat to nourish & hydrating myself, & focus on rest.
It’s pretty amazing how if we just let ourselves take rest days or even a week (especially if you’re under the weather) from training how much quicker we can recover and then can get back into training with that much more energy & motivation to kill it in the gym.
I always say that the answer whether to workout or not when you’re sick is based on how you truly FEEL. If you feel like crap and no energy + your symptoms…I say take a break. But if you just have a little congestion and you’re feeling pretty good and want to move around — do it! Just listen to your body during your training and push to where you can.
Maybe even taking a yoga class or doing some foam rolling is what your body is asking for that day.
Remember that self-care needs to be on your priority list as well with your training, nutrition, etc. in order to create a balance in your overall wellness journey. I stress this to my clients often!!
You do not need to literally push yourself to the limits 7 days a week in order to achieve your results your after, sick or not sick. Remember that rest is your friend and your body, workouts, & mind will thank you.
I hope this helps! Always here for you.
Be true to you,
xo Kasey