| Title: | Bicycling |
| Notice: | Bicycling for Fun |
| Moderator: | JAMIN::WASSER |
| Created: | Mon Apr 14 1986 |
| Last Modified: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Number of topics: | 3214 |
| Total number of notes: | 31946 |
I've just been reading an interesting article in the UK magazine 'New Scientist' which talks about the possibility that sustained hard exercise can lower the activity of the body's immune system. In other words, make you more vulnerable to infection and illness. The evidence is mixed. There's plenty of anecdotal evidence about athletes being prone to infection, but efforts to find a physiological explanation have not been conclusive. It is true that the levels of some kinds of white blood cells (which fight illness in the body) are lowered for short periods after hard effort: for an hour or a day, times like that. As someone who occasionally puts himself through sweaty effort I found the article very interesting, but there wasn't much actual advice one could take from it. Keep away from ill people immediately after training, perhaps. But I do have my own piece of evidence. I occasionally get a slight skin rash on my bum, about once a year, something like that. And a week after the Pyrenean Raid (see note 2411), which was a very big effort, I had the most vigorous attack of this rash for many years. Make of that what you will, but I do think there is a connection. Rod
| T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2431.1 | Wear cotton not spandex shorts | DKAS::GALLUP | Everything is, or it isn't. | Tue Oct 13 1992 10:41 | 20 |
I've read many articles about this as well. I'm probably a pretty good
example that it's true. I get sick, quite often, when I'm working out
a lot. I barely have to get near someone with a cold, then I've caught
it....
The most common theme I've read to explain this phenomenon is that when
a person works out often, they are stressing the body beyond it's
normal limits and, many times, they aren't giving the body enough time
to heal itself. Your body tends to lower it's defenses while it
concentrates on healing the body from the workouts. So, illness can
attack you from the blind side when the body isn't looking. :-)
As for your rash on your bum.....I would suggest that it might be a
slight allergy to the material you're wearing. That, in addition to
the constant rubbing motion as you're riding (and the sweating) can
cause a rash rather easily -- especially after a prolonged excursion.
kath
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| 2431.2 | How about faster recovery | NQOPS::THIBODEAU | Tue Oct 13 1992 13:05 | 6 | |
How about the other end of the cold, I have always found or at least
felt that if I work out hard during a cold that I will speed up
recovery due to the increase flow of blood and hence the increase flow
of white blood cells along with sweating to remove impurities.
Alan
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| 2431.3 | I'm not a Dr., but I play one... | ODIXIE::RRODRIGUEZ | Where's that Tour d' France thang? | Tue Oct 13 1992 14:35 | 9 |
A word of caution:
When you are ill, your resting heart rate is usually elevated. It
increases dramatically with exercise. Working out _hard_ during an
illness is probably not for everyone. Moving around helps me recover,
but I attribute it to clearing my sinuses, not the workout itself.
r�
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