Illness, Recovery and The Role of Data

Once you've been bitten, it's hard to stop. Cycling is the perfect low-impact, aerobic sport available to everyone. Invariably though, at times, you'll get a cold or the Flu and that means staying off the bike until you've recovered sufficiently. But how many of us are actually disciplined enough to do that? Those cravings to get back on the bike are relentless.

Let’s face it; we probably all get back in the saddle at least a couple of days earlier than we really ought to.

In days of old, the advice was to "just ride through it", 'Harden the f**k up" and "It will make you stronger!" they'd say. Well, in December 2014 and through January 2015 I followed that 'advice'. Having never, ever been seriously ill in 30 years and not being one to ever let a cold hold me back from anything, I pedalled on through a bad cold in the harshest winter, to only end up being dragged to A&E by my wife to find I'd gone and given myself pneumonia, which was then followed swiftly by a bout of pleurisy; an inflammation of the lung lining caused most likely by the excessive, non-stop and aggressive coughing! Nice!

The 5-week setback in my fitness was bad enough, but really, I was more like 6-7 months of setbacks, all told.

You see, with a cold, you can be off the bike for a week or two. In that time, provided you eat sensibly, of course, you'll get back on the bike feeling just a little behind where you were prior to illness, but in just a further week or so you're probably fighting fit again. At least, that's the best-case scenario. If, however, you choose to do what I did, it's much worse...

With pneumonia and other lung illnesses like it, it's not simply just 'a really bad cold' (as I was naive enough to think it was). The 5-week setback was enough to put me way behind schedule for the entire year! The months that followed saw my lung capacity totally diminished! Whilst I never did any V02 max tests or anything scientific to share with you, I can say that even the most menial of 50-100m climbs that averaged 3% saw me dismounting and pushing my bike up the pedestrian footpath that thankfully ran parallel to the road. Something that I had never had to do since getting back on a bike in 2013!

It was like getting on the bike again for the first time in 12-18 months, not just 5 weeks.

So, these days I've learned to listen to my body and how it feels. But more than that I look at my stats on Strava too.

Using The Numbers To Spot The Onset Of Illness

Throughout December 2017 I felt strong. Even in the coldest conditions, I'd pick up the odd Strava PR and I found myself feeling I pretty good shape. I'd carried my fitness through from 2017 into the new year. January rolled around and that feeling continued (I even got a KOM!). that was until the latter part of the month where every ride was an effort (without me wanting it to be an effort). I then started to even question whether I wanted to ride on certain days! That's when I knew I didn't feel quite right. Sensing that perhaps a cold was coming on, I actually decided to just assess how it was I felt.

I sat for a few minutes and just listened to my breathing. It was shallower than usual. I checked my heart rate, which typically rests at around 65bpm. It was over 72bpm (not a massive difference, but enough). Then I checked Strava; my average speeds were down, my distances and hours in the saddle were down, (all the while it being no colder or wetter than in previous weeks) and perhaps most importantly; I'd skipped days on the bike.

So, Thursday 1st Feb rolled around. I felt well enough to ride, but not 100% at all. I had decided it would be my last ride for the week and that I would stay off the bike for the weekend and see how I was on Monday. So I had 3 full days of rest (no riding) and jumped back on, on Monday. I didn't feel great. Whilst my legs were rested and I felt strong when I put the power down my lungs let me down. I titled that Strava ride accordingly! So, I rode home casually from work that evening and once again said I'd take a few more days off the bike. More so, I actually took a few days off work to really rest!

Thursday came round and I received word from the guys at 7Hundred that my new carbon wheels were in stock and that they could fit them for me. So on Friday, although I still didn't feel well...there was no way that I was not going to ride, especially seeing as I'd just fitted my bike with some new carbon wheels! I felt better; completing 20 miles full of enthusiasm. Although, i still wasn't right. Arriving home after the ride with a severe cough!

That evening, the coughing continued, I felt terrible! I rested for the weekend and decided on Monday morning that I wouldn't ride again until the end of the week. I'd failed to recover fully as I kept giving in to the call from the bike!

Like every addiction, I found a way though. I convinced myself that the issue was the cold weather and that if I could just train indoors, I'd be fine! I could get my hit of riding without hurting the lungs! So I went along to my local Gym for a 30-minute early morning spin. It felt great, but ultimately, it only served to highlight how high my average heart rate was! It also worsened the cough.

Not having a Heart Rate Monitor out on my road bike, I decided I would get one. After all, I was already using the speculative Strava data, combined with my own perception of wellbeing to judge and forecast my fitness on the bike, so if I was able to add another metric, it would make the entire process even more accurate.

So, I grabbed myself a Garmin Ant+ Heart Rate Monitor and have since been using that. I'm not really using the heart rate monitor for training, but it certainly helps to confirm my own perception of the difficulty of a ride. I use Strava's Suffer Score to aid in this.

In Conclusion

I spoke to Dave at 7Hundred about the role Heart Rate can play in training and fitness. Whilst most of us are aware that resting heart rate is a decent benchmark of your own fitness, it could be argued that your ability to get into your threshold and Anaerobic heart rate zones are a more accurate measure. After all, your heart will protect itself. If you're tired, exhausted or unwell, your heart will not want to work as hard. It will want to stop you from passing out!

So, listen to your heart. Listen to your body. If you're not one to train to numbers, that's fine, but if you have a heart rate monitor, there is no harm in taking a peek at those numbers after each ride to see if your own perception of the ride difficulty, was as your numbers indicate.

Had I had a heart rate monitor sooner and paid closer attention, then maybe I would have spotted my heart rate wasn't the same. I could have proactively taken a day or two off the bike, rather than compounding the issue.

Trust me, having had pneumonia, I'm telling you it isn't worth it.

Stay safe. Play it safe. Don't believe anyone who tells you to harden the F up. Do what feels right for you and er on the side of caution.