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Wednesday, October 14, 2009
More on the Exercise Front
Exercise and your immunities to flu - two recent studies in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity make assumptions on the effectiveness of exercise in boosting one's immunity to the flu. However, not all exercise has the same effect. Read this NY times article and see if it reinforces your ideas about the benefits of exercise.
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The first thing I thought when I opened the link was "Hooray! She has short hair! Good for her!" Haha, I am a bit biased though! It was an interesting article too. I'm not a big fan of exercising, but I do it, partly because I have an HP class, and partly because I like to stay in shape. My parents are always cautioning me "don't work out too hard, you will make yourself sick!" because I get migraines if I push too much. I guess I always thought that people would get sick from being in the same area (workout studio) as so many other people, who have been using the same equipment as you.
ReplyDeleteI more or less usually thought that exercising could only be beneficial when done appropriately and not excessively. However, the only way I thought it would boost your immune system is by getting rid of toxins by sweating as a form of detoxification. Vitamins and Minerals are the main ways I usually think of defending my body but I guess exercising also helps.
ReplyDeleteI have always felt that exercise is great for the immune system but only if done in a healthy way. Also, exercise cannot replace sleep and if forced to choose between exercising and losing sleep, choosing sleep is the way to go. I didn't realize that exercising to much could actually harm you.
ReplyDeleteI think this article just points out the obvious. Moderation is key. If you workout excessively, your body uses time afterwards to recover. It is in a weaker state while your muscles are being repaired. So it's just common sense that if after you exercise hard, you will be more susceptible to illness.
ReplyDeleteWorking out excessively is never a good thing. Exercise is good if breaks are set in between days or ever few days. When sick i always find it benificial to workout. I had the cold this week and found my hour of exercise to clear me up!
ReplyDeleteI agree with a few of the researchers in that when you catch the bug, exercising is not in your best interest. I remember being healthy and running outdoors bundled in the winter - a mix of hot air and cold made me develop ear infections and sore throats and running when I was sick made my body much weaker during and after exercising. When I begin to get back into the habit of exercising, the first two weeks are difficult, however I see the energy boost increase my memory, focus, and immune system. When I get sick, the last thing I want to do is exercise especially after knowing how the severity of it affects my health.
ReplyDeleteI feel that excessive exercise is not necessary in order to remain immune from the flu. Due to my job, I do not have time to go to the SLC every day and improve on my fitness. I do, however, walk to class every day and use the stairs. I have a fear of needles and therefore have not ever gotten a flu shot. Also, I have never had the flu since I've been at Baylor (knock on wood!). I believe that exercise is a great thing, but for someone like me who cannot successfully incorporate it into my daily life, washing my hands all the time and taking vitamins on top of walking to class and taking the stairs is the best defense I can get against the flu.
ReplyDeleteExercise needs to be moderated and like everything else in this world cannot be done in excess or their are negative effects. However; if done in controlled smart manners, working out can be very healthy for your body and I believe the second study shown is the more appropriate example of how exercise is applied and the trust behind how it effects the body. The first example is good to but slightly extreme, but again a good warning of how exercise can be harmful.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with this article. When I played basketball, we worked out 6 days out of the week, so when flu season came it never failed for everybody to get sick, some more severely than others, but it never failed, and most of the time our team would get more sick than other times that weren't in season, and therefore weren't working out as much as we did. It's definitely not beneficial at all to continue the excessive working out once you do get the flu, especially during the time period of having a fever because it is logical that causing more stress on your body while it is already in a stressful state, as well as causing more overheating will definitely result in some cases for your body to shut down.
ReplyDeleteJust like anything in life, if you get too much excersize it won't be a good thing. I think that staying in shape and excersizing regularly is very important to staying healthy, plus it makes you a more happy and efficient person.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I know that when I ran track in high school, after a two hour practice of long distance running and sprint work, I was extremely fatigued and so tired the next day that I almost felt sick. Adding intense workouts on top of a college load and a lack of sleep is asking to get sick.
Exercise is beneficial for just about EVERY system in the body... Including the immune system... It annoys me when articles like these show up because researchers just kind of state the obvious... They act like its big news when all along most people knew already.
ReplyDeleteI don't work out too much, mainly in my hp, but I kind of assumed that working out an excessive amount wasn't good for your body. Almost anything done in an excessive amount is bad for you. If I had to choose between working out and sleep, I would choose sleep because it doesn't come by as often as I'd like.
ReplyDeleteThat makes alot of sense. I ran an excessive amount in highschool for cross country and would still get sick. There needs to be moderation. Lately, I've been running for about 30 minutes three times a week; instead of what I was running in highschool: 60 miles seven days a week.
ReplyDeleteI am not surprised about the results published. Exercise can be very beneficial to the body and strengthens your immune system. And just like everything else, when you do things in excess there can be a negative outcome. Although I do believe that it has a lot to do with the person. These mice were doing this for three days. That is a lot different than a person who is working out for two hours a day daily and their body is used to it than someone who all of a sudden began exercising a lot. It takes a tole on the body and on the immune system...
ReplyDeleteJust like everything else in the world, things should be taken in on account of moderation. Too much of one thing could be bad for you. For instance, eatting too many greasy foods that has high contents of cholesterol can give you high cholesterol. It's the same thing with exercise. Too much exercise can ware your body down and not give it time to recuperate. Therefore, making you susceptible to diseases and viruses.
ReplyDeleteI think regular exercise that isn't overexerting(especially not more than once a week) is still a good thing. However, even if you aren't running a marathon you are still pushing your body during a workout (creating abnormal body temperatures,dehydration,lactic acid build up, fatigue) and your body needs adequate recuperation. It seems that people become more susceptible to becoming ill when they continue working out and are taking on other stresses in life(work,school,family, etc) and don't compensate with the adequate amount of sleep needed to replenish all the nutrients you lose during a typical workout. Also, even if one is sleeping enough and hydrating regularly when working out...this still is a preventative measure(much like vitamins--they supplement an already baseline healthy body). Once you've got the bug, you've got the bug..and I think working out all together should stop until fully recuperated. Since your defenses are already down, your body does not have the reserves that are necessary to achieve what you need for a successful workout without blowing some fuses. You need that energy and nutrient for fighting the virus.
ReplyDeleteI think that exercise can be beneficial to your immune system however, when people exercise too much it too can make them sick. There is a happy balance between exercising appropriately, eating healthy, and taking proper vitamins during flu season. Sometimes the flu is inevitable.
ReplyDeleteI know from personal experience that exercise can be benefical to your health. However exhaustive excerise can comprimise your immune system. It is also important to have a healthy lifestyle practice. As with everything in life, exercise should be done in moderation. It is clear that proper exercise helps the body's immune system stay heathy as long as other healty choices are made.
ReplyDeleteI suppose this is another good reason to start exercising. I can be healthy in another way. Woo!
ReplyDeletei think that the studies show that the more consistent and habitual exercise is then the more beneficial it is for your health. Whereas if you push yourself too far too quickly it can actually negatively impact your health. I completely agree with this!
ReplyDeleteI have always been a huge advocate that daily exercise increases your immunity to most sicknesses, especially the flu. Exercising makes your sweat, and drink more water which keeps you hydrated. Staying active also encourage me to eat healthier, which gives me the nutrients I need to stay healthy, and also to sleep more, which is incredibly vital for keeping away from the flu. The statistics in the article clearly show that steady constant exercise are incredibly beneficial. However, if you begin to get sick and you continue to exercise, it can worsen the way you feel, instead of taking a break and getting plenty of rest.
ReplyDeleteI think that if you exercise to the point of exhaustion you definitely have more of a chance of getting the flu than if you just exercise daily but not to exhaustion. In high school I played sports and we would work out and practice to exhaustion 6 times a week. When people on campus started to get the flu we noticed that almost all of us got some kind of sickness.
ReplyDeleteYou have to workout smart and play right. Aerobic excirsis will give you the benifit, but lifting and stuff is more for strength. Aerobic excersise does boost immune system functions.
ReplyDeleteI think that if you exercise to much, you will get sick because your body is fatigued and exhausted, doing a proper workout, like an hour a day would not hurt and im sure it does boost the immune systems functions.
ReplyDeleteYour immune system is usually not compromised from exercise as long as recovery time > training time.
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