Flu-like symptoms after exercise

[Jaune]

I love running, using aerobic equipment and lifting weights; however, I ususually experience flu-like symtoms for days, sometimes weeks, later. For years now, I have felt as if a virus surfaces in me everytime I exercise.
My PCP is unhelpful.
My ENT recommended L-Lysine which I have been taking with a multi-vitamin everyday for a year.
Any suggestions?

[Eddie_]

This is what helped for me.

I saw this thread last year August (2014) when I was in the same boat. Even at moderate exercise I would have 2 weeks before getting so sick I have to halt all training.

I read this thread and made a list of all the helpful hints, cures etc. that was posted, and from other similar sites.... and then proceeded to try those that did not involve getting prescription drugs.

I have been training for the last 5 months now without a hint of flu. This is what I do:
1. One good Pro-biotic every morning (the ones you keep in your fridge) after breakfast.
2. An apple cider vinegar capsule every morning.
3. A good all-round vitamin and mineral daily supplement (I use Sentrum)
4. I try to cut out all bread, and all sugar.
5. I limit my yeast intake as much as possible. And this has a massive impact on my training. One pizza and my body start complaining.
6. I take Vitamin C after every exercise. (Powder dissolved in water)
7. A quarter Strepsils lozenge for my throat after exercise.  
8. Keep warm after exercise, keep the hoody on for at least 45min afterwards.

Other than that I keep a healthy diet of fruit, veg, red meat, chicken, pasta, rise, potatoes (yes it's yeast but I don't go completely yeast free).

I sometimes train up to 3 or 4 hours continuously at 85-100% of my max heart-rate which is extremely taxing on my body, and I do feel exhausted and fatigued, but tomorrow I'm back on the horse, and ready to go again. This really worked for me, it has changed everything.

The lozenge is pretty important as my throat take a beating with the exercise, and if I don't take it, it gets worse fast.

Hope this helps.
Happy training.

[stinsonj]

I'm pretty sure that no one reads this thread anymore, but I wanted to post what I found to fix MY problem, along with a bit of a backstory.

Back when I was about 20 (I'm 30 now), I started to get seasonal allergies.  These allergies got worse over time and I'm now to the point of starting allergy shots just to make it thru the summer/spring.  Well, around the same time that my allergies started, I also started noticing that when I didn't get much sleep, I would come down with the same symptoms that everyone else has described in detail on this thread.  I didn't do much working out in my early to mid 20's, so that wasn't an issue just yet.  One of the first symptoms I would notice right before getting sick was an increase in post nasal drip (constant mucus in the back of my throat) followed by sneezing, dripping nose, etc.  

Fast forward to current times, and the sickness that I was experiencing became more and more persistent, to the point that I felt sick more than I felt good.  This was because I had gotten in the habit of working out and really didn't want to give it up. It wasn't until I went to a GP that sent me to an allergist who mentioned maybe it was allergies that were making me sick.  Well, I'm not sure why or how, but right now im taking Allegra morning and night, have been for the last week, and I feel great for the first time in a long time, all while working out like a maniac multiple days in a row.  

Im pretty sure, as others have mentioned, that people with this issue have these symptoms for various reasons.  But if you have allergies, please try an antihistamine to fix your issues.   I know how frustrating it can be when all you want to do is make progress, and so far, this has worked 100% for me.

[stinsonj]

Sick again so going gluten free apparently didn't help.  I worked out Monday and Tuesday, nothing extreme, today is Wednesday and I'm feeling like crap once again.  There hasn't been a week that's gone by in the last year that I haven't felt horrible.  Its also pretty disconcerting that there's apparently a lot of people on this forum that have this same problem, but none of them seem to have a clue on how to fix it.

[stinsonj]

Pretty crazy that the symptoms you describe are exactly what I experience.  I, just recently, notice that I sweat a lot more, even when just eating spicy foods, and I get hungover off of only a few beers, where as I can drink whiskey no problem.  I started crossfit about a year ago and had to quit because I kept getting "sick" from overexhaustion.  Since then, I started just lifting weights, which went fine for awhile, but now I'm back to being sick all the time again and frankly, am getting extremely frustrated.  I even get the same symptoms from a lack of sleep (less than 6 hrs for a couple of days straight).  Right now, im trying to go gluten free for a couple of weeks to see if that helps (fyi, beer has gluten in it which may be the reason we cant drink it).  Let me know if you have figured anything out yet and ill do the same!

[littlewalter]

I too am glad i found this site,thought i was going crazy.I'm 46 and an avid mnt biker when we ride we push it pretty hard in this Texas heat (ride 4 days a week)  and i/we noticed that i seem to sweat a lot more than my buddies,but the next day i would wake up like i had a hang over.....slight headache ,fatigue just feeling real bad and btw when i drink beer even just two i would feel like death the next morning,but i can drink whiskey straight all night and feel great the next morning....why is that?

The day after my rides i wake up feeling hung over the next day and it takes two to three days for me get get back to normal and my doctor can't find anything work after couple years of visits.I just suck it up and keep pushing,but it gets harder and harder.

[NewlyME]

It sounds like ME / chronic fatigue but I would look into yeast infections being the root cause of it ? I have ME which has all the same symptoms as you do and so does an older friend of mine. When she finally worked out how to cure hers it was because she had too much yeast on her brain! She was getting all sorts of yeast infections but hadn't put the two together. She had a scan done and hey presto- she had answers!  Beer is full of yeast and you can't tolerate it but you can whisky? It sort of adds up. Why don't you try a day of eating lots of yeast ? Maybe a marmite sandwich as that is yeast extract and see how you are the next day? If you notice a down turn in your symptoms then just eradicate products that have high gluten/ yeast in them and see if it makes a change? Hope that helps :)

[rurabird]

I too was experiencing these symptoms. I was a person who exercised regularly, until I suddenly began having fevers and dizziness after exertion. It got to be bad enough that even a brisk walk would set it off. I also developed an asthma-like response, with shortness of breath and wheezing, and would cough every morning, whenever I took a shower, or exercised. Eventually, other bodily systems started acting up. I would have diarrhea after eating certain foods. My period started lasting two weeks. I was crabby and tired all the time. I needed a daily nap just to get by, and when I cut out caffeine, I found that it seemed to be the only thing letting me stay awake for a whole day. All of my blood tests came back normal. Eventually, after some searching, talking with family about medical history, and intuition, I convinced my doctor to do an ultrasound of my THYROID. I was eventually diagnosed with Hashimoto's disease, a condition that ultimately results in low thyroid hormone, but in the meantime can apparently cause wild fluctuations in levels. I have been on a low daily dose of synthetic thyroid hormone for a few months, and all of my symptoms have resolved. I don't know if this could be the cause of your problems, but it may be something to look into, even if your thyroid levels are within the "normal" range (mine were!).