Researchers in America have found that exercise does not aggravate the symptoms of a cold or reduce athletic performance.Sweating it out in the gym may even do you good if you're under the weather, as it can boost the activity of your immune system cells to help fight off infection.
According to Professor Leonard Kaminsky, of Ball State University in Indiana, having a cold had no effect on lung function or exercise capacity. "I was surprised their lung function wasn't impaired," Kaminsky said. "I was surprised their overall exercise performance wasn't impaired, even though they were reporting feeling fatigued.
Us Brits tho seem somewhat unconvinced by such an idea. Though I too may have recently been bitten by the gym bug (I'm a regular at excellent Islington women's gym Sequin Park), I'm a firm believer that a cold is your body's way of telling you to rest. And I'm not sure your fellow gym-goers will thank you for choosing to share your germs with them. So take it easy, fitness fans :)
