How active were you with COVID?

[redandyellowbits]

Hi, I generally do 12,500 steps a day and a 30 min workout each morning.
I've just tested positive for covid, and have walked 2,500 steps today and no workout as I couldn't manage it. How did you approach exercise with COVID? Do a bit a day or just rest till it was over?
I'm on day 1 and don't feel great but am wondering if I am just feeling lethargic through lack of exercise rather than being ill.

I walk 10k steps a day usually with my dogs, and just couldn't do it when I had Covid.

Took me around 6 weeks to get back to normal walking, and I had to gradually increase.

I'm on day 8. I ran 2 miles on day 1 (when I had mild symptoms but no positive test) after setting out to run 3.

Since then, I've barely moved from bed/the sofa. It took me three attempts to get in the shower this morning, even though I am starting to feel better. I need a sit-down after making a cuppa. Stairs are a real workout.

I also feel that if I just "did" something I'd feel better, but I just can't

I did none/very little for weeks. I generally run (OK jog not very fast!)3/4 times a week and do ar least 10,000 steps a day but tbh covid wiped me out. I wasn't very poorly with it, but the fatigue lasted ages. It took about 3 months to get back to normal for me, starting really slow and building up gradually.

Oh no, I'm dreading the fatigue 🙁

I was in a really good groove with daily workouts and walking and feeling great, was also finally shifting some much needed weight.

Feel a bit brain foggy at the moment and had headache, sore throat and shivers earlier but ok apart from that. I don't know what tomorrow will bring though.

Me too, my running was going really well, times coming down and I'm supposed to race 15 miles on Sunday. Going down the garden to peg the washing out is beyond me today

You may well be fine op, loads of people I know including my dh just felt a bit rough for a day or 2 then felt better. I was shocked how tired I was and how long it lasted.

I had to take a fortnight off all exercise and the fatigue lasted longer than that (probably 3+ weeks in total). Then had to build up again. I only had mild symptoms for three days (slight headaches, slight temp, slight dizziness) but the tiredness was something else.

Give yourself a break. DH is usually pretty active and he passed out walking from our bedroom to the bathroom with covid. It can be a very serious illness.

Shortly before I got it, I read that the best way to avoid long covid was to properly rest up and do no exercise at all for 6 full weeks. I had a real fear of getting long covid so I followed that advice and only went out for very short walks even when I felt better. I think you do have to take it very easy and not push yourself at all.

I could have carried on as normal with exercise but stopped for a week as was worried about long covid and had also read about an increased risk if you didn’t rest.

I did low impact youtube videos by day and snuck out for 5k walks by night.
Managed a gentle parkrun on my first day of freedom and kept it all relatively low HR for a couple of weeks... until the achilles tendon put me on a month's running ban.

You may well be fine though OP! Try and stay positive!

My whole family have had Covid and we're absolutely fine just hated isolating more then anything 🙈
I'm not taking it away from anyone who has been unwell, it is rotten to feel unwell. But you may also just be ok ♥️

I carried on running and walking as usual both times I had covid. But second time my times really slowed up about a week after I tested positive. I totally lost my mojo. Just getting back to normal now, 3 months later

When I had covid I was in bed for 10 days, walked from my bed to the toilet which took my breath away, i then went a walk on day 11 and managed approx 7000 but was knackered. Breathless and fatigued.

Was in bed from day 3 - day 10. Couldn’t exercise for a further couple of weeks after that (usually daily hour cardio). Annoyingly didn’t lose my appetite 🙄. One thing not affected…

I went out for walks when I felt up to it. I just took it really easily. I didn’t run for a couple weeks because I was tiring very quickly. It’s best not to push it.

hahaha. I recall reading here that anyone who tried to exercise beyond getting off sofa when they had covid would cause self irreparable severe permanent lung damage. Or so someone insisted. I knew it was BS but just ignored.

Anyway, I hope your energy recovers soon, OP!!

Rest if you can. My friend carried on (smallholding to run, small kids, husband really ill with covid and someone needed to do the essentials), was mildly ill during and 3 months later still has to lie down after walking over a mile and has ongoing heart and lung issues. She was very fit before - competitive sportswoman in regular training as well as looking after livestock and growing food. Doctor has told her she mustn’t push through when breathless/heart rate through the roof as she’ll risk permanent organ damage.

It’s rare but it’s really shit and had she been able to lie on the sofa for a week when she was testing positive she’s likely to have swerved this.

I’ve had it during June and found the fatigue to be the worst symptom. I’ve been back to my exercise regime of four gym classes per week for two weeks. The first class was a nightmare but the rest have been fine. However, I have had a couple of weekend days or days off since where I stayed in bed reading all day so I’m definitely not fully recovered. Also, not much in the way of cough symptoms - I’m sure if I had it would be a different story.

I barely got out of bed for a week, and when I did even going to the kitchen left me exhausted, so I did nothing

None. I was bedbound for 3 weeks, but that was in 2020 before anyone had been vaccinated and symptoms were much much worse.

I didn't test positive until day 5 of symptoms. Staggered to the park and back on about day 3 feeling absolutely awful. Isolated after that and mostly stayed in bed as felt so tough.
Took six weeks to get back up to 'normal' activity levels and I had to drive to work instead of walking for a few weeks as I just couldn't manage it.

Bedridden for over two weeks (early in first lockdown, I had no immunity at that point and was really poorly).

I have the same routine as you OP but was going 2 or 3 30 min workouts some days and 1 at least a day for 6 days. I managed to do my steps each day and 1 workout but I was slower and more weary. I kinda had the theory that if I kept the bug moving it would work it's way out quicker. Not scientific and might not even have been sensible but worked for me and my symptoms were short lived.

I would take it very easy, the prospect of long COVID is just not worth it.