Falling sick is inevitable, but at times you may just feel energetic enough to still continue with your regular workout routine. Though it is advisable to take a rest day when sick, if you still feel like not skipping your workout, here are a few tips to ensure you do it safely.

1. Avoid Strenuous Exercise:

When you are sick, avoid high-intensity workouts as your body is recovering and needs complete rest. Sweating out a cold or fever is a myth and does not work. In fact, you may feel fatigued if you overdo workout during sickness. Your immune system focuses on your illness, which can be disturbed by overexertion. Hence, it is better to rest entirely or keep it light.

2. Stay Hydrated:

You are always advised to keep yourself well hydrated during illness. Water is essential for recovery. Hence, if you work out and lose water due to sweat, do not forget to replenish it by hydrating yourself throughout the session.

3. Do Not Infect Others:

If you go to a public place to work out, such as a gym, while suffering from some kind of infection, the chances are high that you will infect others. In such scenarios, avoid going to public places as you would not want to spread the infection. You can do some home workouts instead or walk in the garden.

4. Take Breaks:

When working out in sickness, it makes sense to do short sets and rest more throughout the session. Your aim should be to just feel better and increase blood flow in your body. When you are sick, you often get tired of resting throughout the day. Hence, it is ok to feel like moving your body to energize it. But do not overdo it. Remember to rest more and move less.

5. Stop If You Feel Discomfort:

We are not discouraging you from exercising in sickness, but if you feel sicker in between sessions, stop immediately. This means the workout session is not suiting the body and increasing the issues. Better to sit out that session rather than amplify your problems. Your aim is to feel better soon; if exercise is not helping, you achieve it, then stay away from it until you recover.

6. Listen to Your Body:

While there are several workout options for you when you are sick, you don’t need to do one if your body says otherwise. Your body is intelligent and knows what it needs. If it signals you that it is feeling too sick to workout, best skip exercise and rest. Losing a few days of workouts is not a big deal if it helps you recover faster. You can get rid of the infection and resume working out full-fledged.

The Bottom Line: Many people argue that working out during sickness makes them feel better and helps them recover. Especially when you join a gym such as Gymnation, where the ambiance itself is so positive, you will not feel like missing out even a day of your workout. Few medical conditions can get better with exercise, but if you feel otherwise, skip exercise and rest as much rest as needed at home.