Building a Better Jay

I just got done reading this: http://www.ast-ss.com/articles/article.asp?AID=118.

This bothers me because the cold medicine I usually take (Tylenol Cold) contains acetaminophen.  I wonder now how that affected my workouts today and this makes me rethink my stance on training through illness such as colds.  Unfortunately, I lift in the middle of the day and I take cold medicine so I can function effectively at work.  I don’t feel "bad", but I do have a stuffy nose and sore throat.  I guess I better get to bed early tonight so I can get better faster.  Green tea and echinacia here I come!

I had a great workout today, though - chest & tris.  I thought for sure that I wasn’t going to have a good workout because of the meds, but I really felt great and was able to go heavy on every lift - suprising.

Last night and this morning I have developed a sore throat and a runny nose.  First things first, I need to identify how serious it is.  I know this is probably a cold due to the color of the stuff coming out of my nose.  (Sorry for the graphic nature, there.)  I don’t have a fever.  If I develop one, I’ll rethink the cold thing and look at going to the doctor.  Instead, I will change things around to accomodate this recent development as I have while training in the past.

First, nutrition will change only slightly with calories bumping up to maintenance level rather than cutting.  Second, it is now imperative to get as much sleep as possible.  Third, my cardio will be moved down to low-end aerobic exertion, but lifting will remain intense.  I will allow myself to take OTC drugs to treat symptoms for 4 days.  If on Friday nothing has changed, I will go to the doctor.

So many people on the forums ask about how to workout while sick.  I like to think of it like this: if it is above the chest, lower intensity and workout.  If it’s in the chest, sleep more and relax.  That’s how I’ve dealt with it in the past and it works!  Let’s see how well it works this time!