you commuters are usually chatting about this, this time of year. maybe everyone is still healthy? I've had a head cold which included an explosive 2 hr bloody nose one night last week, so I've been staying low, getting to bed early & wearing knit hats indoors & forcing fluids. not currently a commuter but thought I'd poke you guys since you are die-hard ride-every-day types ...

I take the day off.

+1

Why do people want to share the misery?

Misery loves company.

typically a head cold & or bronchitis & cough don't last only 1 day. ultimately, ppl have to continue to work, taking over the counter meds, until symptoms are gone. this can take weeks. I called in sick 1 day at my day job & 2 nites at my night job. basically it was like the freakin' world ended to my colleagues & supervisors

If I'm too sick to ride to work, I'm too sick to be at work.

If it's only a stuffy nose, sometimes the cold air and the heavy breathing helps. If I feel miserable all over, I don't go out.

Well said.

Rather be sick riding my bike than sitting in a ‘box on wheels’ (e.g. bus).
Of course, when feeling really sick or especially when having a fever a day off – and maybe a visit to the doc – is the smartest thing to do.

caloso said it best: “If I'm too sick to ride to work, I'm too sick to be at work.”

Yeah, I hear ya. I teach at a university...so my "sick days" are summer and winter breaks. If I get sick otherwise, my options are to find someone to cover my class (we don't have "substitutes", and the 1-2 people with content knowledge are usually in meetings or their own classes), or potentially get in Really Serious Trouble with the deans and administrators. When my father passed away and I needed to leave town for his funeral, trying to get the paperwork, class coverage, and everything else together was a nightmare...I really thought they wouldn't let me go.

So in we go, sick or not! I've been commuting long enough that I'm used to it. The *really* fun times are the 1-2 times a year I get sinus related laryngitis. Trying to teach with no voice is interesting.

I've been hacking out lung cookies, but got sick of not riding yesterday, so I went for a ride in the smoke. That was fun. I've been coughing at 15 second intervals, including all night long, since then.

Thanks for asking.

Obligatory "this thread is worthless without pictures" comment.

I just did that. As an extra bonus, it was one of those 1:45 Tu/Thu classes.

How to Battle the Common Cold While Cycling

I first read this thread the day it was started as I was sitting at home debating whether or not to ride that day. I'd had a bad cold the week before and so worked from home the whole week and stayed off the bike over the weekend. Trying to ease back into things and still fighting a lingering cough I had only biked in one day that week but by that Friday I was starting to really miss riding. I ended up deciding to ride and felt OK. The next morning my cough was worse. I went out for a leisurely ride yesterday, but drove to work today. I'm starting to feel like the cough is never going to go away.

So what does that mean as an answer to the original question? If I feel like riding, I ride. If I don't feel like it, I don't. I'm in a position to have that option. Not everyone is.

I have a theory that fresh air and moderate exercise are good for you, even when you're sick, but I try not to push myself when I've been ill.

I highly recommend talking to students with a text to voice application. It's particularly amusing when I turn on the voice of an older British man.

This is a class with 12 grad students. I had some colleagues give lectures on their specialties while I sat there and coughed all over everyone.

My wife has a British accent (due in large part to being British), and as an extra bonus, is a virologist.

Ride with a cold? Sure. Ride with a fever? Not if I can avoid it, because with a fever, I need to rest, though I remember I was sick once when I was in college, and I ate on the meal plan, and the cafeteria was a half mile away. I figured riding there took less effort than walking, so I rode slowly.

Must stop reading BF. Woke up with sore throath this morning :-o

My city is flat, so you can "take it easy" - which means when I'm sick, if I'm capable of driving, or taking a bus to the doctor, I sit on my bike and ride to the doctor. Even in the winter - just dress well.

Like many others have said, if it's just the sniffles and I feel pretty ok, then I'll ride.

But I had an unpleasant cold from Monday through Wednesday, so I bit the bullet and drove. Tried to take it easy and get to bed early to maximize my resting. I felt well enough to commute Thursday and Friday, and it was glorious.

And if I have aches and fever, such as the flu, then I am staying home. And a few weeks ago I was afraid I was getting a stomach virus, so I called an Uber home. But that was the first time in 3 years of commuting that I couldn't ride home due to illness. My bike is in a secure room at my work, so I feel ok about leaving it there if I have to.