Don’t overdo it, but exercise can kick a cold

It seems as if everyone on campus is sick—whether it be fevers, colds or those people who cough until you’re pretty sure that they have TB even though they insist that it’s “just a tickle.”
However, as someone who has been a varsity athlete since I could stick letters on my jacket and whack a ball—or dive into a pool, for that matter—I can’t remember a coach ever letting me off for being sick.
Assistant Swim Coach Brian O’Neil said, “As long as you’re not bleeding or dying, you’re in the pool.”
Another coach in high school told me, “Being sick is a state of mind. A real athlete doesn’t get bronchitis. Besides, working out will make you feel better.”
Working out makes you feel better? Excuse me? Except, of course, the masochist in me comes out and it sort of does make me feel better.
Swimmer John Feniello (’11) agrees. He said, “I feel that when I raise my heart rate and body temperature it makes me feel a little better. I feel sicker if I go a couple of days without working out.” When asked if a coach ever made him work out when sick, he was unable to answer at first for laughing too hard.
Kati Eggert (’11), a tri-varsity athlete, provides an interesting perspective. She said, “There has been many times where I’ve worked out while under the weather, whether it be voluntarily or because of mandatory practice…It is the athlete’s responsibility to know the difference between dangerously ill and an ordinary sickness.”
The quote Eggert uses to remind herself of this, is from Olympian swimmer Ian Thorpe, who said, “I am not going to allow myself not to perform well just because I don’t feel well. I am bulletproof to the extent that a lot of things can be thrown at me, but it’s about how much I am prepared to let them affect me.”
Some people take it a step further. Kate Etcheverry (’10) of women’s rugby was adamant about the benefits of working out when sick. “It makes you feel better to sweat it out. Gets rid of all of the toxins in your system.”
Coach O’Neil reiterates this point, saying “I’ve heard people say it’s better to sweat the fever out, so go all out to get everything out.”
Sure, crazy coach man that swam even when he lost his voice and was coughing out a lung.
But what about the rest of us who want to get better or at the very least not die?
According to Director of Health Services, Joyce Maglione, “There is a sufficient amount of research indicating that exercise in general can help boost the immune system.”
However, she cautions that “whether or not you should exercise when you are sick depends on the nature and severity of your illness. Some advocate the neck test: if your symptoms are above the neck such as runny nose, watery eyes, and sneezing then a light to moderate work out shouldn’t be harmful.”
This sounds perfectly logical. So even if you are feeling a little under the weather, a couple of rounds on the elliptical could make you feel better.
Mind you, there are certain precautions. Maglione says, “If you do exercise when you aren’t feeling well it is important to stay hydrated and eat a healthy diet.  If you feel lightheaded, nauseated, or weak you should not be exercising.  You also want to avoid spreading your illness to others, especially if you go to a gym. It’s important to use proper gym etiquette, use a towel to wipe off surfaces, and be generous with the hand sanitizer.”
That seems to be the sticking point with a lot of coaches. Work out, take care of yourself, but most importantly don’t get anyone else sick. Diego Scerbo (’12), an off- campus judo competitor said, “My coach has left it up to us to practice while we were sick or not. If it was a serious illness he wouldn’t let us practice. In such a close contact sport [judo], it’s more of preventing the illness from spreading.” O’Neil agrees.
He said, “There’s feeling under the weather, but if you’re sick-sick, stay away because you’re going to get everyone else sick.”
And no coach is going to sacrifice one player for the whole team, much in the same way that as much as you want to get your body spring break ready, hacking up a kidney on the treadmill is not only going to get you a lot of funny looks, but a lot of dirty ones when everyone else in the fitness center gets sick as well.