Recovering from sickness!?

[rowrow12345]

I recently was very sick for around 2 weeks with something like pneumonia and before that in September I had covid. Right before i got covid in September I pulled a 7:35 2k and now I think I’d be lucky to go sub 8. My lungs don’t feel that bad, I keep up during my teams runs but as soon as I start a hard piece, 30 seconds in I get terrible lactic acid in my quads. I rarely used to get lactic acid in my quads other than of course, well in to a 2k. Now my muscles feel so weak, it feels physically impossible for me to pull anything under 2:00 for more than a minute. I used to automatically hold a low split (for me that’s like sub 1:50) at high rates and now I can somehow be at a rate 34 and 2:10 split. I thought that maybe it was harder to pull because I lost weight while being sick but NO, I actually have gained 5 pounds since my last 2k.
I was hoping someone has had experience with this because I’m getting super discouraged and I want to get my strength back. Any suggestions on how to fix this or why my lactic acid is so bad and muscles feel so weak would be greatly appreciated.
female
Height: 5’10
age: 17
weight: 147 lbs

[Dave Neve]

Hello rowrow 12345

I think you might get a lot of answers to this as there are so many aspects to explore.

Taking one aspect though, aerobic v anaerobic and lactic acid, here is what ChatGPT has to say;

Anaerobic exercise causes the body to produce the most lactic acid. During anaerobic activities, such as sprinting or heavy weightlifting, the body relies on energy sources that do not require oxygen, leading to the production of lactic acid as a byproduct of glucose metabolism. In contrast, aerobic exercise, such as long-distance running or cycling, primarily uses oxygen to produce energy, resulting in less lactic acid production.

Based on this, I'd say you might have to change your routine until you fully recover, which in your case would mean leaning towards aerobic rowing (longer distances rather than shorter ones with intensity).

And patience of course. You had a series of illnesses that have clearly impacted your body. Give it the time it needs to recover.

Good luck.

[Tsnor]

I recently was very sick for around 2 weeks with something like pneumonia and before that in September I had covid.... Now my muscles feel so weak, it feels physically impossible for me to pull anything under 2:00 for more than a minute. I used to automatically hold a low split (for me that’s like sub 1:50) at high rates and now I can somehow be at a rate 34 and 2:10 split.

I was hoping someone has had experience with this because I’m getting super discouraged and I want to get my strength back.
female
Height: 5’10
age: 17
weight: 147 lbs

Talk to your doctor. Explain exactly what you said in your post. Better - print out your post and send it to your doctor.

There are things like overtraining your doctor should rule out. They will set your expectations for recovery following two significant illnesses in the last 2 months. And they will be able to give you actions you can take that are tailored to you.

Your description of what you are doing and feeling is excellent. At a guess 1/3 to 1/2 of the people on this forum are thinking "Been there, done that". You are not alone. Recovery Timeframe Rule of thumb, for every day out take 2 days at reduced load to get back to your prior training. This article talks a bit about COVID which can have lingering symptoms -- most of which go away at 12 weeks so could be a problem now but will go away. https://www.triathlete.com/training/inj ... rep-covid/

Good Luck. And talk to your doctor.

[Dangerscouse]

It's easier said than done, but you need to remain patient and forget about your previous sessions for the moment.

How recently were you sick? I remember having flu about 25 years ago, and I mean proper flu, not a cold like some people call the flu, and I could hardly walk more than 50 metres for about a week afterwards and it took me about two months to get anything close to normal again.

Bouncing back from illness can be a roll of the dice and sometimes it's a lot worse than others, but you can't shortcut recovery or do better than getting professional advice. Good luck

[JaapvanE]

Recovery Timeframe Rule of thumb, for every day out take 2 days at reduced load to get back to your prior training.

As a former athlete, our friendly team doctor always used a one-on-one ratio after you are truly recovered. But that was downhill skiing where races are shorter than two minutes.

It could well be that your body is still fighting the remains of a serious illness, requiring a lot of energy. Your lack of power might signal a lack of energy as your body can only do one thing at a time. In the words of our team doctor "You are not truly recovered when you can barely make it beyond the bathroom".

With illnesses like flu and COVID, true recovery might take quite a while. It could take months before it really clears your system. So talking with a medical professional what is realistic in your situation is indeed the wisest approach.

[iain]

I would second the "not recovered" suggestion. Many times I have felt better than usual after an illness and assumed that I am recovered, but it is a bit like the "boiling frog", the way you feel is relative so being less ill feels amazing but does not mean you are over it. The other point is that recent research into inactivity had to be discontinued as the impact of bed rest was severe over only a few days. Did you spend time without any activity? If so the impact on muscle atrophy etc. takes much longer than the 2:1 above that applies from an active life without training. As for muscle loss, I find that I put on weight quickly when I am not training. 2-3 pounds for topping up glycogen stores, the rest in fat (as I tend to eat enough to do 900 kCal exercise per day on top of normal activities), that is 2 pounds of fat a week! Add a small reduction in blood and potentially muscle fluid volume and a net increase of 5 pounds can hide a significant loss of muscle mass. Depending on your body composition before, this might mean that holding the same split is requiring you to recruit a higher proportion of muscle fibres and so increased use of the fast twitch muscles that generate lady lactate. Add the reduced oxygen capacity of your blood to deal with the acidification and you would explain your symptoms.

I was only ill for a few weeks, but ceased training for 4 months around the turn of this year. Coming back my previous 90 min SS pace took HR above threshold in 30 min. THe good news is you get it back quicker the second time, but I'm afraid it sounds like you have work to do to recover the lost ground.

Good luck.

[p_b82]

Another non medical sample here of "You're still recovering so this is to be expected & start off slower"

this summer I've had Covid, a couple of festivals (minor sniffles after), a 10 day holiday & last month a nasty virus that took me out another couple of weeks.

Since July I've missed 6 weeks entirely & in October I only managed 16.5k total volume; my Hr is currently a good 20+ bpm up on my HM pace (when training for the FM earlier in the year); and I blow up if I try to do much faster, even on shorter distances currently.

So I'd suggest your treat this as "normal" and get back on the erg with a recovery from injury mindset, not a "I'm going to be smashing out these times again because I'm feeling better."

Good luck and hope you get back there soon!

[jamesg]

Any illness that attacks the lungs will reduce oxygen transport capacity. And no oxygen, no fire.

I've had a couple of illnesses since June this year and have dropped from a normal 120W in any WOD to about 100W for short intervals, 6x1'+R1'. So I've started to do that, 2-3 times a day.

[pagomichaelh]

Looking at your age, it seems to me that you don't really have any experience in getting a major illness, and going through the recovery process. A lot of us have been through a lifetime of various illnesses and injuries, and have a lot more experience in it!

It just takes time, and you want to avoid a stress injury trying to push yourself to your old performance level faster than your body can keep up (ie; the lactic acid is telling you something, and that something is that you need to back off a little!).

I feel for you, as I'm coming back from some major problems (lung embolism, followed by mitral valve repair, followed by Covid), and have to keep reminding myself to be patient; to rebuild slowly but steadily. Don't look at where you were prior to illness, look at where you were the day after your illness, and measure you progress against that baseline as you recover.

[Nomark]

Im a beginner to rowing but not to running and getting sick - try not to compare yourself to your August self. Comparison is the thief of joy, even with ourselves!

Just build it back up slowly. Remember back to a time when you were trying to get sub-8. You weren't disappointed with a 7.59 because you wanted a 7.35 but you did get down to that level and you will again. So just get back into that mindset of beating 8 and then go faster next week and the week after. It won't be long until you are back to your best - I imagine far quicker than it took you initially!

[H2O]

I used to automatically hold a low split (for me that’s like sub 1:50) at high rates and now I can somehow be at a rate 34 and 2:10 split.
female
Height: 5’10
age: 17
weight: 147 lbs

I hope you feel better now (let us know). For a female at 147 pounds sub 1:50 is very good indeed. As to your condition: from 1:50 to 2:10 is a very serious decline. This may not even happen WHILE you are sick. There are examples of people you were in races with a slight fever and still doing reasonably well. I think you need to be careful with something like this.

I used to be a swimmer and started training one week after being free of fever from a flu. My coach had me do a 200 fairly fast and I was 20 seconds off my PB. This is like being a full minute off a 2K PB. On seeing a doctor myocarditis was diagnosed, three months no workouts.

[rowrow12345]

Thank you so much for everyone’s advice! It has been super helpful to know that it does just take time to recover and it’s not uncommon for the recovery process to be like this. I went to my doctor and he cleared me to row and i’ve slowly but surely been improving like most of you said would happen. I’m new to this forum so I don’t really know how to answer to all your replies individually, but I really appreciate everyone’s insight

[p_b82]

Glad to hear that your Dr has given you the clean bill of health - hopefully your recovery from here onwards is nice and quick!