If you have recently recovered from COVID-19 – or if you are experiencing long-term consequences of your infection, you are probably eager to return to your normal (or as normal situation as it may be during a pandemic). Part of the routine before coronavirus may include exercise.
Obviously, there are many mental and physical health benefits to your body to move around, and it is important to adapt a fitness routine that works for you. But it’s also crucial to be smart to exercise after COVID-19, because doing too much too much can make you go back even further.
Below, experts tell you how to start exercising again after a COVID-19 diagnosis, plus the signs that you may not be quite ready yet.
When to start exercising again depends on your symptoms
COVID-19 affects everyone differently. There are general guidelines for when it is safe to start sweating, but it all depends a lot on the symptoms.
“If someone is suffering from the symptoms of COVID, they should wait until the symptoms resolve before starting light to moderate exercise,” he said. Keri Denay, the medical director at Briarwood Family and Sports Medicine in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and a fellow at the American College of Sports Medicine. “It’s usually between 10 and 14 days.” Exercising beforehand can make the symptoms worse or worse.
If you are asymptomatic but have tested positive for the coronavirus, you may itch to move sooner. After all, exercise can help your immune system when it comes to respiratory infections such as COVID-19, according to research published in the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Medicine.
“The immune and inflammatory response to COVID is lower in asymptomatic individuals compared to those with symptoms,” Denay said. However, it is still best to wander to the side of the warning and take it easy until you fully recover, or if you respond to the virus slowly and show symptoms later than usual.
“All athletes and people who exercise who test positive for COVID-19, regardless of symptoms, should rest for a minimum of ten days,” he said. Brian Grawe, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and assistant professor of orthopedics and sports medicine at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. ‘If a person tests positive but has no symptoms, the [rest period] start on the date of the positive test. ”
How to start exercising safely after a mild or moderate coronavirus infection
“Start low and go slow,” Denay said.
The best things to do is a low impact: think of walking, yoga, easy cycling or swimming. Use your body mass only or the lightest weight possible, and build from there. Do not pick up where you left off until you became ill.
Keep in mind that you should also start with the lowest number of repetitions and stay away from any AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) or HIIT (high-intensity interval exercise) exercises where you can do all the repetitions you can in a set, take out. amount of time.
As a general rule, it is useful to follows an amendment rule of 50/30/20/10 over the span of four weeks, as recommended by this study in HSS Journal. This means that you should decrease your workout during the first week by at least 50% of your normal exercise capacity, followed by 30%, 20% and 10% in the following three weeks. But again, these would mean that you have to spend for these processes. You may need to adjust, depending on the severity of your infection, and you may need a gradual return to activities that take place over many months, rather than weeks, ” the researchers behind the study said.
Both Denay and Grawe said it is critical to constantly monitor how you feel while resuming intense activities, whether it be workouts or organized sports. If you experience any of the following, you should stop exercising and consult a healthcare provider before starting again.
- Chest pain or palpitations
- High heart rate is not proportional to the effort or prolonged recovery of the heartbeat
- Shortness of breath, difficulty breathing or abnormally rapid breathing
- Excessive level of fatigue
- Swelling of the limbs or muscle pain
- Outing
- Tunnel vision or loss of vision
- Fever
Ignoring these symptoms and exercising high intensity anyway can lead to arrhythmia for those with myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle that in some cases it can be caused by COVID-19 (and may even go undiagnosed or remain unknown).
“As you start exercising again, keep in mind that this is not the time to get uncomfortable, especially if it comes in the form of chest pain, palpitations or extreme shortness of breath,” Grawe said. ‘Listen to your body and keep in mind that it takes one to two weeks to get fit and get back on track. It is safest to slowly increase physical activity and return to your normal routine. ”
While it can be frustrating, use this time to focus on things that can increase your performance and endurance that are not linked to sweating, such as proper hydration, stress reduction and nutrition. Remind yourself that rest can also be productive in the long run.
How long guards should handle exercise
There is no cookie-cutter approach for anyone going to exercise after COVID-19, but this is especially true for those with long-distance symptoms, Grawe said.
“Those who are infected need to pay close attention to their body and monitor symptoms like someone who has fully recovered from the virus,” Denay said. “It’s going to take time to resume previous levels of activity, and although the brain may be ready, the body may not.”
Alternatively, Grawe said that those who feel physically ready may not have recovered mentally from their COVID-19 diagnosis, so it is important to know where you are and to keep your healthcare provider involved in your care if questions or problems arise. .
As mentioned above, it is smart to start with low-impact work – especially if you have persistent symptoms, such as coughing or breathing problems. Any high-intensity work can make it worse. Talk to your doctor or physiotherapist about the advice for your specific case.
Above all, patience is the number one thing you need to start practicing safely again. This includes resisting the urge to compare yourself to others who may have been ill and are now back to their regular workouts, as COVID-19 affects each patient differently.
“Remember that one mile is another’s marathon,” Grawe said.