Avoiding gym during flu season ?

Just wondering if anyone else is as paranoid about catching the flu as I am..
I am in crunch time at college and would be completely screwed if I got sick right now.. So Ive been weary of going to the gym on my regular schedule..

Anyone else skipping out on the gym right now ?

I think your best bet would be to keep yourself healthy by eating well, drinking well, sleeping well, keeping yourself hygenic by washing your hands and etc. This will provide some level of resistance. You can catch the flu by being in a crowded place or being in contact with a single carrier. There are no hard and fast rules when and how you catch the flu.

Missing going to the Gym for such a long period of time seems to high of an opportunity cost to pay for something that may or may not happen and could just as equally happen anywhere else. You would be throwing away a large part of all the hard work you have already put it in previously at the Gym!

At best I'd maybe not go for the week before your exam or reduce going say from 3 or 4 times to 1-2 week if thats your typical schedule.

I know I would feel run down and lethargic if I didn't get my gym exercise fix in. Personally I would chance it. To echo what Star mentions, take precautions by washing hands often, eat well, and in addition take vitamin D if you are not already. I began taking D3 a few years ago and to my surprise have not had a cold since. And I guess that is a common finding with D3 about cold prevention. Here is one article that talks about swine flu and D3 prevention: http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/20...swine-flu.html

Being in a germy environment builds your immunity (like a nurse at a hospital). You're exposed to the flu many times per day, but if you're healthy and well rested your body fights it off.

Is a flu shot too much to ask? I get one every year and haven't had the flu in 20 years.

About 2 months ago, I came home from the gym and didn't feel too good. The next day I had the chills, and then for the next 2 weeks I had a persistent low-grade fever and bronchial congestion. I lost 15 pounds and my strength plummeted.

I pretty much got swine flu from going to the weight room at one of the busiest times of the year (start of uni semester) and during peak hours. Someone had it, was breathing on something, and then I got it. In a situation like that you're pretty much screwed.

I'm back in the gym now because I got over the flu, but it was definitely not a good 2 weeks right at the start of semester, I had a lot of catching up to do.

So I guess what I'm saying is, avoid the gym if you have more important things to do. If you plan on going sometime after, just be smart about it. All the stuff about "losing your hard work" doesn't apply unless you're serious about training (i.e. competition).

(Also remember that even if you come back in January, watch out for the inevitable crowds of people that show up to the gym because of some half-hearted New Year's Resolution. Lol)



Yeah, get the flu shot too, it might help.

Just keep your fingers away from your eyes/nose/mouth and keep your hands clean. As a nail biter, I make sure that i NEVER do it when I'm at the gym, wash my hands after I lift, and use Purell when I leave. I also make sure I keep very well hydrated and eat well as well as get enough sleep. Your more likely to get sick from letting yourself get run down, than you will from randomly catching it from strangers. Also, stay away when you see people are sick/coughing/sneezing.

Never worth it in crunch time. I canceled a few family visits last week because they had lingering sickness.

Avoiding places in the first place is probably what made your immune system not able to fight germs in normal places (e.g., gym). Places.

∆∆ agreed. pretty sick of the h1n1 paranoia.

Are you guys afraid of going to the gym because it's a high traffic place where people are sweating and putting their faces up against machine pads and benches or are you guys scared that the temporarily weakened immune system heavy training causes will make the flu full force where otherwise it may pass through relatively innocuously? Or both, of course.

For me it's mainly the second. Working out heavy can place too much stress on the body in the short time. But I do like to work out fairly heavy in short time (which, I think, is the worst way to work out if you don't want to get sick). One fairly easy way of taking care of that is by changing your routine during flu season by working out less and less strenuously. It doesn't have to be work out or don't work out. Might also be a good time to switch things up: maybe a p90x type bodyweight routine from the home? Better yet, when you think of how many quality exercises can be done, one barbell and a couple of plates is really all you need in the basement to hit everything.

Somatoform's pretty much right on the money. I got sick after a huge lifting session, the next day I thought I was just really tired from the heavy weights but it was the flu.

Originally Posted by Cognacad

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Avoiding places in the first place is probably what made your immune system not able to fight germs in normal places (e.g., gym). Places.

The gym is not a normal place. It's crowded, people are breathing everywhere, touching everything, the air is often poorly circulated.

I'm not saying you should live like a shut-in until flu season passes, I'm saying that you shouldn't increase your risk of catching something by doing something that is completely preventable (not going to these kinds of high-risk places).

same here

Originally Posted by NewYorkRanger

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Just keep your fingers away from your eyes/nose/mouth and keep your hands clean. As a nail biter, I make sure that i NEVER do it when I'm at the gym, wash my hands after I lift, and use Purell when I leave. I also make sure I keep very well hydrated and eat well as well as get enough sleep. Your more likely to get sick from letting yourself get run down, than you will from randomly catching it from strangers. Also, stay away when you see people are sick/coughing/sneezing.

I lift at home. I can touch the weights and not worry about touching my nose. I also get to drink my water from a tall open-mouth glass made of actual glass, and listen to whateverthefuck I want on the stereo at full volume- and many other luxurious priviledges like farting mid lift if I need to. But for all you sods who don't have a setup at home, I offer one solid piece of advice for avoiding catching coot:

Don't wipe the sweat off your face with the same towel you use to wipe the equipment.

Obvious, yet I saw people do it all the time during my germy gym-going days. And I saw so many snotty, coughing sikkers, it made me want to punch major face.