5th flu this year

[thripston]

I seem to be stuck in some sort of cycle at the moment. I have a few gym sessions and then get floored by a cold then when I feel better again I get maybe 3 or 4 sessions and then floored by a cold again. Am I over training maybe?

My usual session is to do about 45-60 minutes on the machines and then hit the treadmill for about 40 minutes. I generally try and push my limits on the machines, most of it is upper body with some lower body stuff. I dont do the 'leg day' thing I just do roughly the same session. The treadmill stuff mixes uphill running and some burst sprinting. I have lost about 4 stone with this 'program' and built some muscle mass. It certainly isn't scientific, at all. But it's better than doing nothing, which is pretty much what I was doing previously, apart from a bit of running.

My diet is pretty balanced, I'm not overly strict about fats and carbs but I try and keep them minimal and I avoid the really obviously dodgy stuff plus I make sure there's plenty of fresh veg and fruit and decent cuts of meat.

I'm 45 and I've only been doing weight training for about 3 years. I was able to do it 3 to 4 times a week last year but this winter has completely screwed me up. It's getting to the stage now that I'm frightened to do anything in case I set it off again.

I really don't feel like I'm doing enough but the moment I start pushing my limits I seem to get clotheslined. I started a circuit training class the other week, it was pretty intense with some heavy repeated lifting etc but I did my best and I hurt for a few days after. Was all set to do it again this week and then wham I'm floored again.

Its really starting to get me down. I was healthier when I was just running occasionally. The only thing it might be is lack of sunlight, weve had a really crappy prolonged winter in the UK and I guess I might be lacking vitamin D. Other than that I can't think of anything else it might be.

I'm going to make a doctors appointment, I wasnt actually expecting medical advice by posting here, just wondered if it was something that'd be fairly obvious to people who know a lot more about how much you can push your limits.

[tobymax123]

Training is not making you sick. Go see a doctor.

[Wayne Evans]

IMO....

I'm no doctor so take my comments as you see fit.

It's about maintaining a resilient immune system so I'd endorse getting plenty of anti-oxidants into the daily mix....without fail.
Here's a quick google reference link rather than me itemizing: http://www.fatfreekitchen.com/nutrit...ant-foods.html
Note that many here will state 'my diet is pretty balanced' or other similar qualifications when in reality it needed some fine tuning. (depending one's goals)

I've have not been sick, not even sniffle, in about 8 years which is about when I starting pushing some metal around and studying nutrition a bit deeper.

Hope that helps and I'll let others offer more suggestions.

That's my take on it for a start anyway....good luck.

Carry on.....

[bmccurdy]

Sounds like you may not be allowing yourself enough rest to fully get over your illness. Do you have a separate 'sick' toothbrush? Maybe its time to toss it and get a new one.

[thripston]

There's a fair amount of berries, red peppers, grapefruit, nuts etc going in. If it is something lacking in my diet then it's something really specific or my metabolism obviously needs a lot more of whatever it is. That's something only an expert is going to be able to figure out.

I felt like I was over my colds each time I resumed training. Maybe I wasn't.

I really want to believe it isn't me over doing the training, especially when I'm pretty sure I'm not doing enough, but it seems too much of a coincidence. But yeh only a doc is going to have a proper answer.

[Ralikar]

My usual session is to do about 45-60 minutes on the machines and then hit the treadmill for about 40 minutes

So you do "push your limits" on weights probably going to muscle failure all the time, intense cardio right after, hills and inclines, sprint inclines, then circuit trainings with heavy lifting?

I'm not sure your diet/split but there's probably a reason your immune system isn't that stellar...

When does your body ever get to recover? You can't effectively lift weights if your goal is also to run for endurance and speed and "push your limits" on everything at all times... You can't be Arnold, an Olympic sprinter and a marathoner at the same time. You need to step back, actually understand if you want to be a weightlifter, runner, sprinter or general endurance athlete and construct a training schedule that meets your goals and make sure your Protein/carbs/fats (macros) and overall diet/calories supports that. IMO you are probably low on the amount of protein and the massive amount of carbs that schedule may need -- keeping fats and carbs "minimal" on that training is suicide.

1) Go to "nutrition" stickies and read about macros and know the protein/fats/carbs that your body NEEDS and your overall calories. Below is what bb.com suggests for carbs -- I would be AMAZED if you were near that, near the protein requirements of heavy lifting, and close on fat. Look up fat/day -- you need fat!

Moderately active: 4.5 - 6.5 g/ kg (about 2 - 3g/ pound)
High active: 6.5 - 8.5 g/ kg (about 3 - 4g/ pound)
INTENSE activity: + 8.5g / kg (more than 4g/ pound)

2) Set your fitness goals -- arnold, runner, sprinter, or general endurance athlete
3) Design a real plan to make that happen which is supported by your nutrition/macros

It's not too hard to guess why you are sick: you're slamming your body with some unposted always to failure weights, probably too low protein, it tries to recover and you slam it again with more lifting later on circuits, you have vegetables as a 'good' carb source with "mimimal fats and carbs" so you're body has no energy, can't recover from the massive cardio, as it's trying to handle repairing muscle, probably on too low cals all the while, while the "minimal" fats thrashes your hormonal/immune system.

[thripston]

I think I might have made it sound like I'm doing a lot more than I am. I do my weights/treadmill session Monday & Tuesday (and not every week, if I do a run at the weekend I'll often skip the Monday slot) I always leave Wednesday free, then I might do Thursday & Friday but again most weeks I just do one or the other. The circuit training was just a one off and I didnt do anything for at least 4 days after.

When I do my sessions I am pushing to fail though with the weights but not intensely so, its more about doing a lot of reps than doing just a few with really heavy weights. Then I am doing pretty intense cardio after. I read somewhere you get the most out of cardio (for fat burning) if you do weights first otherwise it takes about 30 minutes of cardio before your body starts burning fats. Maybe I am pushing too hard in every direction though, I guess scaling back the weights side of it wouldn't hurt.

I usually have 2xtoast or 1xtoast and a banana in the morning, couscous or noodles with my lunch, root vegetables/rice/couscous/(wholeweat)pasta with my evening meal and bran cereal after. I'd say there's a fair amount of carbs going in. I eat a lot of tinned mackeral/tuna/cuts of red meat, that's all plenty of fats and protein there. Whether that tallies with the quantities I need I couldnt say. I havent measured what I'm taking in, I just try and do everything in moderation.

It probably wouldnt hurt to start taking multivitamins every day, not like I'm a kid any more.

[jyurk]

do u even immune system m8?

[thripston]

Guess not if all the fresh fruit and veg doesn't count. Or do you mean multivitamins? Suppose I should start using those.

[Mdenatale]

Stop licking the barbells and the handles on the machines.

[Amstat]

Wash your hands more often. Especially directly after working out in a public gym.

[BalhamBeast]

Low Vit D levels can reduce white cell count. Try supplementing.

[anonymous]

Guess not if all the fresh fruit and veg doesn't count. Or do you mean multivitamins? Suppose I should start using those.

Don't bothers less you're ordering them from the us, the only ones you can buy in the uk contain only the eu rda, barely enough to prevent someone from dying of malnutrition and completely worthless.

IMO take two weeks off, and evaluate your other life stresses

[Wayne Evans]

There's a fair amount of berries, red peppers, grapefruit, nuts etc going in..

Yes...that is true.
I'm only suggesting keeping those items in the said 'balance' of nutrients during each day....not going nuts () or overdosing on that food group.
If I recall my reading correctly dark greens are also good anti-oxidants for the daily nutrient intake.

Supplemental vitamin expenditures is a personal judgment call. (unless a doctor prescribes them due to a inherent deficiency).
Personally, I don't take them and think it's just a lot of marketing hype.

Others have provided you some good food for thought also.

That's my take on it....hope that helps.

Carry on....

[djflex]

May wish to consider a yearly flu shot...

[FitnessFan76]

Five bouts of flu in one year? I haven't had one... go and see a doctor, not post on a bodybuilding forum!

Edit: Have you been continuing your lifting during these bouts of flu? Don't do that...

[sfalcon1]

Wash your hands more often. Especially directly after working out in a public gym.

^^^ THIS and don't touch your face or rub your eyes.

It works.

[thripston]

Maybe hygeine, thought I was being pretty on it there, apart from licking the barbells.

I deliberately didn't do any lifting or anything till I felt I was over my colds.

I made the right move posting here. My doctor isn't a food scientist or a body builder. When I suggest to him what people have said here he'll say 'yeh probably' and advise I make those changes before we go the route of doing blood tests or whatever.

Assuming my activity level is moderate (I'm a desk jockey so my gym sessions are about it for exercise) I worked out I need about 400g - 600g of carbs a day being about 200 pounds. That sound about right?

As for the other stuff I'll try multivitamins etc, just to be sure and stop mixing my cardio and lifting on the same day. Then see how I get on from there.

[weiss1967]

I used to be sick multiple times a year. For me the secret to get out of that circle was simple. I started doing cold water showers and immersions. If you are interested and want to give it a try. You will need a bucket full of cold water, little sprinkle from shower doesn't work, itsa a mass flow thing. After you finish your normal shower just dump the whole thing, head and shoulders. Try to enjoy it. Skreaming is okay, perfectly normal, its like orgasm, well not quite, but if you workout you know what I mean. High point thing. You can do this routine even when you are already sick, strangely as it sounds, but it works. What also works is swimming in the ocean year around. You don't have to actually swim, just get in and out. It works for everybody, you are not any different and do not need any kind of special conditioning to start doing it. You may get slight sinus or mild cold first time, but this would be your last one. Well now you know and have no excuse.

[JoeLytham]

As mentioned, make that doctor's appointment! If you've had 5 colds with a week or so in between, you've either been ill or recovering since the start of the year, never 100%, so those sessions sound too much to me - you should wait until you have it out of your system before doing a fairly heavy exercise load. I used to cycle with a club and a couple of guys pushed too hard over the winter, had continual colds and ended up with glandular fever. You dont say what your job is - could that be adding in some way? As you've mentioned, we've been lacking decent sunlight this year in the UK. Maybe swapping a gym session for a walk outside in your lunch break?

[Fiale]

If in the UK just go to your GP and get a flu shot - that's why the government spend millions on them every year - and then you won't be spreading the infection onto the gym eqpt others need to use, and putting them at risk.