I'm coming back from a case of Mono, and I'm trying to rebuild my cardio. I've been off of any type of exercise for close to a month, and just got clear by my doctor. Any suggestions for the most efficient way to rebuild an aerobic base? I've looked into some HIIT plans for my trainer, and I'm just curious what any of the forum members may have done in the past.

HIIT is the opposite of aerobic base. It's anaerobic top end. Lot of miles for aerobic base.

do you have a power meter or smart trainer? Start with an FTP test. Sweet spot training is the most efficient way to build aerobic base for those on limited time schedules

IANAMD, but if I were just getting back from mono, I'd spend the first two weeks doing nothing but long and slow. In fact, I'd pick a loop circuit so I could cut short or add on laps depending.

Tempo and sweetspot. It's how I typically start winter training. Most bang for the buck until you're ready for higher end stuff.

This is eminently sensible advice. Far more important than getting back into shape quickly is not getting back into the shape you were in with mono. My memory of coming back from mono (way back in the last millennium) was being barely able to walk to and from school, followed by claiming the recliner when I got home for a half an hour. And that was only half a mile, downhill.


Go easy, take it easy, don't push hard for at least the first couple weeks. Then plan on taking another month to build a decent aerobic base before you even think about doing anything harder.

I guess I should have mentioned that I’ve been back to slow rides for two weeks now, been staying in zone 2.
Wanting to start slowly ramping up. I guess I just need to throw on Netflix and enjoy the spin.

Listen to your body. But, as others have said, IMO it's better to build back a little too slowly than it is to go too quickly and suffer an injury or relapse or whatever. In the long run, no one will care that it took you an extra couple of weeks to get back to where you were.

I lost about 6 weeks to viral pneumonia that hit me in the 2nd week of Jan. surprising how much / how fast you "de-condition" in that time. you really have to build it back up "slow and steady" ... if you get sick again (common w/ mono), you've wasted all the work of getting back to form. My first stage back is to get on the rollers 5-6 days a week, steady, smooth sessions; just re-introduced the rowing machine as well. Cardio comes back on its own when the frequency is high.

That's what I've heard. It does come back quicker than strength training for sure. Something to do with retraining your central nervous system to fire muscle fibers for certain lifts.