The weather is finally back to normal. People in Denver and Boulder have been complaining that the city is not plowing the streets and in many cases people have been unable to get out of their streets. This area has received more snow than normal. It is very cold and ice is everywhere. Many mailmen are falling all over the place because there is so much ice. All of this in happening here in Colorado. You would think Colorado of all places can handle snow and bad weather eh? Well not really. In Winter Park were I moved to is business as usual but not in Denver.
With the cold weather come colds and respiratory problems. Many of my athletes all over the US and even overseas are sending me emails that they are sick. Can I train? Reads a popular email. The general rule of thumb is that you can train moderately as long as you can breath well. The thing to watch out for is to stay super hydrated. Sometimes a short easy workout that raises your body temperature a little helps you kill bad bugs. This is essentially why your body gets a fever so you are helping a little. But if you are weak to start with and can not breath well then just rest. The last thing one wants is to get bronchitis or pneumonia.
Once you are well do not go do your long run. I suggest you do an easy workout of each sport before you get back to the schedule. So if the fist day that I feel well is the day that I normally do my long run. I move my long run to a future day and go easy first.
I also find that if I am out for a week or so I feel a little stiff the first week back. On my second week back I feel absolutely normal. It takes about as much time you take off to get back to feeling normal. Notice that I say feel. I can feel not normal buy yet go faster. This has happened plenty of times to me. I have set many training personal records after a forced rest. Check it out next time or if you have a related story feel free to post it here.
On the personal side I found a training goal for the spring. I plan on riding a 450 mile ride in 6 days over the Colorado Mountains in June. It is called “Ride the Rockies”. I better get that trainer out and practice what I preach.