Originally Posted by
bisiklet
I'm not a medical guy in any way, so this is "just me". For cold/flu type of illness I have two rules of thumb (well, right and left)
1. Body depends solely on immune system for viral infections with no real vaccine or cure (e.g. cold & flu). So the best I can do is supporting my own immune system - which is a warm rest indoors.
2. Profuse sweating works magics on me for those kind of infections. I usually get over a really hard flu in a day or two of hot bed rest, akin to Finnish bath. I mean real sweating like swimming in your own sweat. Then, I'm up and well again just in a day or so - as opposed to crawling around more than a week. However, it becomes tricky with all that sweat and you need to be very careful not get "cold over cold". In such times, if I've absolutely got to get out of bed, I go like a walking tent.
So, I'd suggest skip the excercise and stay warm, indoors. I'm curious about what medical pros would say on this, though. I'm almost sure that they would agree on (1) but to this day I've never heard a doc advising (2). Is this really "just me"?
It isn't just you. I've used the same technique many times. It makes sense. After all, a fever is your body raising its core temperature in order to burn up the cold virus. Reasonable exercise or wrapping yourself up in blankets is a way of artificially producing the same effect; it raises your core temperature. As a side benefit, exercise also produces a natural antihistamine that helps clear your sinuses, at least temporarily. As previously mentioned, if you choose to exercise or ride, keep it reasonable. If you let your body get fatigued, which is easier to do at such times, or let your body get cold afterward, you run the risk of letting the virus take a stronger hold. I'm not a doctor. I'm just regurgitating information I have found in a variety of medical articles over the years.