How to avoid illness this winter...

The winter is one of the best opportunities for racers and enthusiasts to take a step back from racing, events and competition and really focus on training to make the improvements they need for the following season. There are several different ways that you can avoid illness this winter and stay fit and healthy!

This article also applies to cyclocross riders – even more so maybe as the training load you will be doing in this period will be much more intense and place a bigger demand on the body.

One of the biggest and most important ways to avoid an illness - Don’t over train.

Overtraining is often one of the biggest reasons for athletes picking up illnesses. Training places a big strain on your body and when your body is focusing on recovery from activity, the immune system doesn’t get the attention it needs. Therefore, the more time that your body spends recovering, the less time the immune system has to maintain optimum function.

Lab research shows that athletes exercising at a high intensity for 90 minutes or more experience a steep drop in immune function that can last up to 24 hours.

The drop in immune function is caused by the elevation of stress hormones released during and following heavy exertion.

Respect recovery- sleep need etc

Your body needs sleep to keep the immune system functioning. There’s a huge amount of research on the internet now which shows that those who get less than 7hrs sleep a night have a dramatically lowered immune-system response when under virus attack rather than those who are getting 7-9hrs sleep. Sleep also helps the immune system to be able to fight off disease much more efficiently.

Supplementing Zinc

Zinc can be found in cells throughout the body. Zinc is absolutely crucial for the body’s defence against illness (the immune system). It’s used in many key processes in the body such as cell division, cell growth, wound healing and within the breakdown of carbohydrates. Therefore, you could say that is pretty crucial…

Supplementing zinc is incredibly easy and accessible. Most supermarkets now stock zinc supplements for little expense. Alternatively you could try and consume more zinc naturally through foods such as seeds and nuts.

Hydration is still key!

Hydration can have a huge impact on your body functions and also plays a vital part in your body’s defence. Having the correct hydration strategy can improve oxygen flow which will help flush out harmful toxins and keep your eyes and mouth wet which will block contaminants which could cause infection.

Hydration will help to strengthen the immune system, prevent illness and optimise bodily functions.

Hydration also plays a huge part in performance. Studies show that fluid ‘Losses of 5% or more of body weight during physical activities may decrease the capacity for work by roughly 30%’. Making sure you are properly hydrated is just a no-brainer!

Supplementing vitamin D

You should also consider supplementing vitamin D. Vitamin D plays a big part in health, training and performance and can be hard to give your body a sufficient amount through the winter months. It plays a role in a number of body functions such as bone health, muscle function, inflammation and immunity.

Supplementing vitamin D can be a great idea for athletes, especially those living in areas such as the UK. Just like zinc, vitamin D supplements can be brought from a local supermarket and is recommended to take 10-20 micro grams per day to reach your daily requirement.

Monitoring your Heart Rate

You can monitor your heart rate to look for signs of illness and catch it before it develops.

Taking your resting heart rate will establish a baseline which you will need to be able to compare to. You can then look for any unexplained elevation (by around 5-8 beats per minute) which could be a signal that your body is fighting off an infection and would be a good idea to take some crucial rest.

This will allow your immune system to be able to deal with the infection rather than putting on more straining stress which it will have to deal with.

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