Running: The Cure For The Common Cold

This post was originally published on the Phone.com blog.  If your contact center is like ours, it’s a daily battle to keep enough people healthy to have enough bodies to answer the phone calls.  

‘Tis the season for the sniffles!  The leaves have fallen, the temperature is dropping and I have a cold.  Thanks to the three noses in my house that went before me, I knew I didn’t stand a chance.  Allow me to boldly predict that if you live with and/or work with people, you are doomed to catch a cold if you haven’t already.

Behold!  I bring good tidings of great joy!  I have found the cure for that cold and I want to share it with you.  My secret?  The moment the sniffles start, I lace up my running shoes and hit the road.  I have a history of sinus infections caused by seasonal allergies and frequent colds, but since I started running five years ago, those have stopped.  There’s no secret that running and other cardiovascular activity expands your lungs, allows you to breathe deeply and supply more oxygen to your body.  I often refer to it as a break from congestion.

But baby it’s cold outside!  I had a feeling this might come up.  I must confess that I live in San Diego but I have run the last two mornings in 34 degree weather.  I’m definitely not calling you to join your local polar bear club.  Be smart and bundle up as you deem appropriate.  I never embark on a winter run without a beanie, gloves, athletic pants, and two shirts.  Of course one of those shirts is always my Phone.com shirt!

Before you attempt to run away from your cold, I want to remind you of a few things:

• Listen to your body!  My rule of thumb is that if the illness is below your shoulders, it might be best to stay in bed.
• Slow down!  Consider slowing your pace and shortening your distance so you don’t overdo it.
• Consider indoor exercise!  Use your best judgment and consider indoor exercise if the weather is particularly unfriendly.
• Rest!  Exercise is no substitute to getting plenty of rest and consuming vitamin C.   These three things together however can be a winning combination.

In this season of coughs and colds what do you say we give your noses a break and let our feet do some of the running?  I’ll see you out on the road.

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