Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

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mjr
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by mjr »

http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/fitness/page ... -cold.aspx says it's OK to run if it's not a fever (NHS likes running more than cycling, bizarrely) but that does contradict other pages like http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/coldsandflu/ ... mfort.aspx which say to rest, flatly.
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Vorpal
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by Vorpal »

Most medical advice sites think of cycling as a sport. If one takes it easy and slowly, it's no worse than walking. If on the other hand, one is out for exercise, it's probably best not to whilst feeling unwell. Everyone is different; some people are better than others at understanding their limitiations and listening to their bodies. Some people are more susceptible to one kind of stressor or another. It's easier to say 'don't do it' becuase that is the least likely to result in a poor outcome.

For me, I *can* ride my bike if I can get out bed and walk, but if I am already under the weather, I have learned not to try to do more that I do everyday. For example, if I have a cold, I can still do my commute and outside of the effects of the cold, I won't be bothered by it. If, on the other hand, I take a 50 mile ride, my cold is likely to be much worse for a couple of days afterward, because I don't ride so far very often anymore.

I will sometimes go for a short ride just to see how things go, and extend if I feel up to it. Last winter when I broke my rib, part of my reason for staying off the bike was not wanting to jolt the rib. I did start on a spinning bike a couple of weeks before I actually rode anywhere.

p.s. +1 for keeping the germs at home, and shopping on-line :)
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tyreon
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by tyreon »

Be kind to yourself,Tony. There's no medals in it. No tv deadline. No book to write. You wont live longer for thrashing yourself. Play the long game. That Crohns can be evil. Make sure of your well-being. Take what meds you need. Seek help if you need it. Early interventions and all that. Get better soon.
Tonyf33
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by Tonyf33 »

I'm off out now, shops and then a pootle around. Still feel crap but maybe the cold air will help drag the crud out my lungs quicker..lolz At least I ate yesterday without dire consequnces :D
nomisp
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by nomisp »

Hi, have just struggled through manful earlier this week, there was no way I could have cycled the 20 miles into work, so the car took the strain. I do feel slightly better now but I will still avoid the commute for a few more days to allow the body to recover more. I will start off with a few short easy rides to see what it effect it has and then extend rides from that. No point in pushing the body too much.

regards Nomisp
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by Moodyman1 »

It's been a good week to be ill. wet, windy and freezing.

been in the car all week due to the chest infection. no shame
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Audax67
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by Audax67 »

Point is that upper respiratory tract infections don't go further down because it's a bit too warm for them down in the lungs: they flourish better in nose, throat & larynx. If you go cycling or running in cold weather you cool down your trachea and maybe bronchi, and at the same time your elevated breathing rate and force sucks the infection down into your lungs, which are now a pleasant environment.

If you don't do this for long and warm up again quickly you can be OK, but 20 miles on the bike would be just about perfect for something nasty to start. Once it's down in the lungs and running nicely then once you warm up again it'll be a bit too warm for it but it'll make the best of a bad job.

A chum of mine gave himself pneumonia this way, and my wife's running forum is full of folk with stories such as "It didn't stop me running. It's gone away now but I've got this chesty cough I can't shift". Him and 3 million other hard cases.
Have we got time for another cuppa?
reohn2
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by reohn2 »

Moodyman1 wrote:.... no shame


Yeah,no shame in being ill,and no guilt complex for not riding because of that either.
It's bad enough not being well,without feeling guilty for it too :?
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Flinders
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by Flinders »

Audax67 wrote:Point is that upper respiratory tract infections don't go further down because it's a bit too warm for them down in the lungs: they flourish better in nose, throat & larynx. If you go cycling or running in cold weather you cool down your trachea and maybe bronchi, and at the same time your elevated breathing rate and force sucks the infection down into your lungs, which are now a pleasant environment.

If you don't do this for long and warm up again quickly you can be OK, but 20 miles on the bike would be just about perfect for something nasty to start. Once it's down in the lungs and running nicely then once you warm up again it'll be a bit too warm for it but it'll make the best of a bad job.

A chum of mine gave himself pneumonia this way, and my wife's running forum is full of folk with stories such as "It didn't stop me running. It's gone away now but I've got this chesty cough I can't shift". Him and 3 million other hard cases.


It's well known in the horse racing world that you don't work/run a horse with a 'snotty nose' as you can end up with a permanent respiratory problem, I expect that reasoning is the same. They even 'scope' horses (send a camera down the nose, as horses only breathe through the nose) if there is any doubt whether the tubes are clear.
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Audax67
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by Audax67 »

^^^ Interesting, didn't know that.
Have we got time for another cuppa?
landsurfer
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by landsurfer »

i've got sciatica ... 4 weeks now. pain like i have never had before .... but if i cycle short distances (10 miles or so ) no pain at all ..... until i get off the bike. baffled !!!
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by Vorpal »

I've been told that's quite common with sciatica. I had sciatica during pregnancy, and the only time my back didn't hurt was riding my bike.

It can have numerous causes, but I got help from a physio therapist. The GP was useless. She told me to 'take gentle walks' and said it would get better. When it didn't, she said it was due to pregnancy and gave me a little flyer about dealing with back pain that had advice like 'don't bend over'.

I've had twinges now and again since. Usually massage is enough to sort it. But if I had real problems with it again, I'd go to a physio.
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by Merry_Wanderer »

I had the same experience with sciatica. Intense pain whilst standing and walking, no pain whilst sitting or cycling. As Vorpal, my GP was useless and suggested after looking at me lying down on the couch that one leg was longer than the other and recommended an orthotic in my left shoe. The GP had one made specially for me which just transferred the sciatica from my pelvis and leg to my pelvis, leg and back.

The sciatica only went away with treatment from a wonderful physio. After getting me to lie down on her treatment couch she noted that one leg seemed longer than the other. However, she then noted after rotating my pelvis that the pelvis was out of alignment. After some gentle manipulation and rotation she put my pelvis back in alignment and gave me some exercises to do at home every day to strengthen the muscles which support the movement in the pelvis. After 3 days the sciatica was much reduced and after 2 weeks all pain had gone. I had a follow up session with the physio to make sure all was well. End of problem after 2 sessions which cost me £70. I would cheerfully have paid many times that to be pain free, such was its intensity and debilitating effect on my life.
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simonineaston
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by simonineaston »

Cripes mate, it's bad enough you having to struggle with a chronic condition like Crohn's without you piling on the extra hassle of feeling guilty - if you don't feel up to cycling, hop in the car and don't give it a second thought, till you you feel well enough again to get back on the bike. That's what I say!
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Tonyf33
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Re: Feeling guilty whilst not cycling & car use thru illness

Post by Tonyf33 »

Went out just to the shops again, seem to be recovered from the chest thing but being off the bike so much and generally feeling cream crackered anyway it was like cycling through treacle :(
There's a section of main road off my estate that's absolutely level and I push along it so I can keep the traffic off until a sharp bend, then it turns downhill ever so slightly, I can generally do 20 & 25mph respectively as I'm fresh out the door and warms the muscles up rapidly, today it was 13 & 16ish, god it was hard work!
Going to have a trundle out tomorrow, need to get my legs back to some sort of 'normality', whatever the hell that is!
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