Happy Friday Everyone!
This morning, I have a cold. I have been fighting it for a few days now but I will admit...I am sick. Sometimes you just have to give in, do what you can and then allow it to pass. I am doing everything that I can to get this cold/flu out of me! I thought this morning it would be the perfect post! How do you combat a cold or the flu??? Freeze it (I remember my mother throwing me in a chilled bath when I was little because my fever had reached 102.) Starve it? Feed it? Rest? Sweat it out? 
I am not a doctor but I do have some facts! Last night while in bed for hours...I did what I do best, researched! Right now I know about 6 people that have the same thing that I have. We are all sick and it was bound to happen. I haven't been sick in about 4 years! Seriously. To quote a good friend "why would the flu want to be in a active body?" With that question, it made me think..."Do I workout if I am sick?" Let's find out!
I am not a doctor but I do have some facts! Last night while in bed for hours...I did what I do best, researched! Right now I know about 6 people that have the same thing that I have. We are all sick and it was bound to happen. I haven't been sick in about 4 years! Seriously. To quote a good friend "why would the flu want to be in a active body?" With that question, it made me think..."Do I workout if I am sick?" Let's find out!I checked out a study that CNN did back in November. Dr. Rick Kellerman of the American Academy of Family Physicians explains his opinion on this subject.
Even though it may be tempting to not break an exercise routine, working out may actually prolong the illness," Kellerman said. And, in rare cases "viruses can damage heart muscles."it is a myth that you can sweat out germs and toxins. He acknowledges that "low levels of exercise increase endorphins and benefit the body, but an intense workout that creates high levels of endorphins can wear down the immune system."
In other words, "Don't count on endorphins to heal you." Kellerman advises his patients to skip their workout if they have a fever. It puts too much stress on the heart, which already is beating faster because of the higher body temperature. If you're suffering from chest congestion, coughing and shortness of breath, he said, you also shouldn't work out. And exercising with a stomach ache will probably make you feel worse, he added.
But if you have the sniffles and milder symptoms of a cold, moderate exercise is probably OK, Kellerman said.
He recommends that athletes use cross-training to learn about different levels of exercise. A cross-training routine can help rebuild strength as you recover. Kellerman also suggests easing back into a full workout.
"When you're feeling better, don't start back at 100 percent," he said. "Start at a lower level. Give yourself time to recuperate [or] you might relapse or prolong the illness."
Another reason to skip the gym if you're sick is to keep from spreading the germs to everyone else. "Be considerate," Kellerman said. "Wipe down machines, wash your hands and stay home and rest if you really don't feel well."
In other words, "Don't count on endorphins to heal you." Kellerman advises his patients to skip their workout if they have a fever. It puts too much stress on the heart, which already is beating faster because of the higher body temperature. If you're suffering from chest congestion, coughing and shortness of breath, he said, you also shouldn't work out. And exercising with a stomach ache will probably make you feel worse, he added.
But if you have the sniffles and milder symptoms of a cold, moderate exercise is probably OK, Kellerman said.
He recommends that athletes use cross-training to learn about different levels of exercise. A cross-training routine can help rebuild strength as you recover. Kellerman also suggests easing back into a full workout.
"When you're feeling better, don't start back at 100 percent," he said. "Start at a lower level. Give yourself time to recuperate [or] you might relapse or prolong the illness."
Another reason to skip the gym if you're sick is to keep from spreading the germs to everyone else. "Be considerate," Kellerman said. "Wipe down machines, wash your hands and stay home and rest if you really don't feel well."
I love it when I read studies that go back and forth...No you shouldn't HOWEVER....Sounds like to me you should just do what your body is saying. I do agree with spreading germs if you are sick. I have a pet peeve and it includes going to school, work or the gym sick. If you want to still work out I say do a at home workout! I got something the other day that just so happens to fit right in this category and man...I am so glad I got it! I will be using these if I feel like I want a workout later, without getting other people sick!
About FitDeck Exercise Playing Cards
Q:What is FitDeck?
A:FitDeck is a unique deck of exercise playing cards containing illustrations and instructions describing different exercises, stretches, and movements. Our current line of 24 different FitDeck titles range from FitDeck Pilates to FitDeck Navy SEAL. Find out more info about FitDeck here.
Q:What’s the best way to use FitDeck cards?
A:There are hundreds of ways to use FitDeck cards depending on your fitness level, motivation, and resources available to you. The most basic way is to warm up, shuffle the cards, select a card, perform the exercise, and repeat as desired. Find more cool games and workout ideas here.
Q:How many cards should I start out with?
A:It depends on a number of factors: ability, age, fitness level, etc. An average person may choose to start off with five cards and then assess how they feel the next day. To be safe, most people begin using FitDeck cards every other day in order to allow for recovery time in between workouts. More advanced users may choose to begin with 15 – 20 cards in their first workout.
FitDeck’s mission is to help build a foundation of fitness by creating hundreds of basic workouts that are:
Simple
Convenient
Fun
FitDeck achieves this by delivering information in a playing card format that is easy to understand and simple to put into action. Our growing list of FitDeck titles aims to connect with a diverse population of people on multiple levels (age, ability level, equipment, time available, motivation, etc.).
Philosophy
We believe that consistency in a fitness program is the single most important factor in living a long and healthy life. Consistency is achieved with an engaging and flexible exercise program that understands the many challenges we face every day - and provides a solution. Our goal is to meet every fitness challenge that you face with equal doses of simplicity, convenience, and fun.
Simple
Convenient
Fun
FitDeck achieves this by delivering information in a playing card format that is easy to understand and simple to put into action. Our growing list of FitDeck titles aims to connect with a diverse population of people on multiple levels (age, ability level, equipment, time available, motivation, etc.).
Philosophy
We believe that consistency in a fitness program is the single most important factor in living a long and healthy life. Consistency is achieved with an engaging and flexible exercise program that understands the many challenges we face every day - and provides a solution. Our goal is to meet every fitness challenge that you face with equal doses of simplicity, convenience, and fun.
I am going to use the Yoga deck tonight! Last night I opened all of them and took a look. I was excited to actually see some exercises that I have never done before. I received:
Body Weight Deck:
Number of Cards:
56 Exercise Playing Cards
Equipment:
None
Fitness Levels:
Beginner to Advanced
Targeted Users:
Men & Women (15-55 yrs)
Mix & Match with:
Yoga, Navy SEAL, all titles
Description: FitDeck Body weight is our original and most popular deck of Exercise Playing Cards.and pilates decks! It was so great to get more than one. How sweet! I love the fact that I can take these with me on vacation, to the gym or in my room. These are amazing!
Number of Cards:
56 Exercise Playing Cards
Equipment:
None
Fitness Levels:
Beginner to Advanced
Targeted Users:
Men & Women (15-55 yrs)
Mix & Match with:
Yoga, Navy SEAL, all titles
Description: FitDeck Body weight is our original and most popular deck of Exercise Playing Cards.and pilates decks! It was so great to get more than one. How sweet! I love the fact that I can take these with me on vacation, to the gym or in my room. These are amazing!
Yoga Deck
Number of Cards:
56 Exercise Playing Cards
Equipment:
None
Fitness Levels:
Beginner to Advanced
Targeted Users:
Men & Women (15-55 yrs)
Mix & Match with:
Pilate's, Body weight, Stretch
Description: Designed to improve breathing, concentration, flexibility, and posture.
Number of Cards:
56 Exercise Playing Cards
Equipment:
None
Fitness Levels:
Beginner to Advanced
Targeted Users:
Men & Women (15-55 yrs)
Mix & Match with:
Pilate's, Body weight, Stretch
Description: Designed to improve breathing, concentration, flexibility, and posture.
AND
Pilates Deck
Number of Cards:
56 Exercise Playing Cards
Equipment:
None
Fitness Levels:
Beginner to Advanced
Targeted Users:
Men & Women (15-55 yrs)
Mix & Match with:
Yoga, Bodyweight, Stretch
Description: Designed to improve core strength, range of motion, and muscle control.
Number of Cards:
56 Exercise Playing Cards
Equipment:
None
Fitness Levels:
Beginner to Advanced
Targeted Users:
Men & Women (15-55 yrs)
Mix & Match with:
Yoga, Bodyweight, Stretch
Description: Designed to improve core strength, range of motion, and muscle control.
I put the cards on the floor and went to it! I decided that the "15 minute workout" would be perfect for me since I didnt feel that great but wanted to do more than just sit at my desk all day.
How it works:
5,10,15-minute routines (all FitDecks)
5-and-Out – shuffle cards and select any 5 cards from the deck. Perform the 5 cards and you’re done.
10-and-Out – shuffle cards and select any 10 cards from the deck. Perform the 10 cards and you’re done.
15-and-Out – shuffle cards and select any 15 cards from the deck. Perform the 15 cards and you’re done.
30-and-Out – shuffle cards and select any 30 cards from the deck. Perform the 30 cards and you’re done.
5-and-Out – shuffle cards and select any 5 cards from the deck. Perform the 5 cards and you’re done.
10-and-Out – shuffle cards and select any 10 cards from the deck. Perform the 10 cards and you’re done.
15-and-Out – shuffle cards and select any 15 cards from the deck. Perform the 15 cards and you’re done.
30-and-Out – shuffle cards and select any 30 cards from the deck. Perform the 30 cards and you’re done.
It was so much fun and wow, the workout went by so fast because I was really occupying myself with the cards. Also it took all the guess work out of it. If I decided to do my own at home workout it takes some planning on my part and sometimes I don't want to think. I just want to zone out and do the workout. This really helped! I love these cards! Thank you so much Phil for sending these my way. You are saving me from going to the gym and making others sick! If you guys would like to have something that you can have with you for on the go or at home when you cant get to the gym, these are the tools you need. Why not? I am always in favor for workouts you can fit into your purse ;)
Check out their site! For 14.95 you can buy a deck that will always be there for you. With so many to choose from, I recommend more than one. I am glad that I got three!
Now that I have talked about whether or not you should exercise if you are not feeling so hot. What you can do if you want to exercise but not in the gym.
You might have wondered what food you should eat when you feel sick and not doing anything. Most common illness is common cold and that can be easily treated if healthy foods are eaten on a daily basis. When you are sick, you don’t feel like eating and it is no fun. In such cases, you have to choose the best food that will make you better since you can only eat very little. Here are the foods that you should eat when you feel sick:
Chicken soup has cysteine, an amino acid that’s released by cooked chicken. It’s chemically similar to a bronchitis drug, acetylcysteine, and it works with other soup ingredients to reduce inflammation. Salty broth also helps thin mucus.
Yogurt with active cultures, that are also know as probiotics or live healthy bacteria, can help fight colds in the first place. One, Lactobacillus reuteri (found in Stonyfield Farm yogurt) are very good.
Drink hot tea: It can fight virus, and acts as a inflammation-relieving antioxidants. Drinking five cups of black tea a day for two weeks can help produce 10 times more interferon, the proteins that fight viruses, than drinking an instant coffee.
Dark honey has a lot of protective antioxidants. And a big squeeze of lemon in every mugful adds a little extra vitamin C to your virus-fighting kit, plus the tartness stimulates saliva, which makes swallowing easier.
Oatmeal and many other whole-grain cereals delivers three nutrients known to support your immune system: selenium, zinc, and beta-glucan.
As you might have noticed, most of the foods that we listed above are not solid ones. This is because hard and solid foods are harder to digest. Although these are the best foods to eat when sick, it might be better to eat wide ranges of food when you get healthier because then you get all kinds of nutrients. Most important food or drink when feeling sick is water.
Chicken soup has cysteine, an amino acid that’s released by cooked chicken. It’s chemically similar to a bronchitis drug, acetylcysteine, and it works with other soup ingredients to reduce inflammation. Salty broth also helps thin mucus.
Yogurt with active cultures, that are also know as probiotics or live healthy bacteria, can help fight colds in the first place. One, Lactobacillus reuteri (found in Stonyfield Farm yogurt) are very good.
Drink hot tea: It can fight virus, and acts as a inflammation-relieving antioxidants. Drinking five cups of black tea a day for two weeks can help produce 10 times more interferon, the proteins that fight viruses, than drinking an instant coffee.
Dark honey has a lot of protective antioxidants. And a big squeeze of lemon in every mugful adds a little extra vitamin C to your virus-fighting kit, plus the tartness stimulates saliva, which makes swallowing easier.
Oatmeal and many other whole-grain cereals delivers three nutrients known to support your immune system: selenium, zinc, and beta-glucan.
As you might have noticed, most of the foods that we listed above are not solid ones. This is because hard and solid foods are harder to digest. Although these are the best foods to eat when sick, it might be better to eat wide ranges of food when you get healthier because then you get all kinds of nutrients. Most important food or drink when feeling sick is water.
Wow, when I read this I was thinking "all of these I eat almost every single day." I have to disagree sort of with one thing. If you are congested the worse thing that you can do is eat dairy. Dairy my friends contributes to mucus. Stay away from dairy if at all possible when you have a stuffy nose or chest congestion. It really does help! This morning I went with my gut. I thought, what does my ill feeling body want? I'll show ya! 
This combo (with a slice of almond buttered toast) was what got me going this morning. Another thinks this was great too! Thanks for the thought! Fresh fruit, coconut and KOMBUCHA was the morning eats. To be honest...If I don't start to perk up, I may be fasting for the rest of the day. My body is not hungry in the least and I want to listen to it. I am sure though once this is completely eaten (I have been working on it for a hour) then my tummy will want more later. We will just have to wait and see.
This combo (with a slice of almond buttered toast) was what got me going this morning. Another thinks this was great too! Thanks for the thought! Fresh fruit, coconut and KOMBUCHA was the morning eats. To be honest...If I don't start to perk up, I may be fasting for the rest of the day. My body is not hungry in the least and I want to listen to it. I am sure though once this is completely eaten (I have been working on it for a hour) then my tummy will want more later. We will just have to wait and see. I hope that this post may make you feel better if you are in the same boat as me! I always tell myself "you will not always feel this way." I know that when you feel bad you feel like "will this ever end? will I ever feel "normal" again?" Yes, yes you will. Just listen to your body and it will want what is best for you. Always.
See you tomorrow and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!
-Heather
