Sick a Week Before a Marathon Event | Adjust and Run

Last updated on November 2nd, 2022 at 05:31 pm

If you’ve trained for a marathon or half marathon you remember the hard work in the many weeks leading up to the big race. Often times the last week involves a “lessening of the load” as far as per-day runs are concerned. Furthermore, this last week leading up to the race is intended to give your body a break before the race. Oddly enough, many runners get sick a week before a marathon event during this rest phase. And this could range from a scratchy throat to a full-on fever.

Regardless of the type of illness, feeling sick has very real implications for a race and potentially the results.

Think of all the questions that swirl around your head when approaching a race while sick:

Will I be able to run at my goal pace?
Will I have uncontrollable bowel movements nowhere near an aid station?
Will running in the race hurt me permanently or long term?
Will I be able to breath properly?

So, in this post, we cover the psychology and physiology around sickness and racing.

What Type of "Sick" Are you Feeling

First, keep in mind there are many types of sickness you may be feeling leading up to your important run. And some impact performance and health more than others.

So, while it’s good to consult a physician to check whether or not to proceed with a race, below we go through three common ailments.

Plus, we cover how much you can expect to be impacted in the lead-up to race day.

Common Cold

Common colds are very frustrating and unfortunately aren’t limited to the winter months. Symptoms of a cold usually include (source):

- Sniffling
- Runny nose
- Mild Headache
- Difficulty sleeping
- Low grade fever
- General fatigue
- Slight Soreness

If you feel any (or all) of the symptoms above, you will feel relatively crummy.

That said, most people are still able to complete day to day activities when they have a common cold.

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In fact, while you may feel a bit like garbage leading up to your race, a common cold shouldn’t cause you to miss your race.

Additionally, you may not even experience an impact on your overall times since much of the symptoms reflect more surface level issues.

Furthermore, if you have a cold the best way to prepare for your race in the week leading up is by:

focusing on rest
hydrating well
trying not to focus too much on how crummy you feel.

Additioinally, if experiencing some breathing issues you may want to read through our other post on Improving Lung Capacity for Running – Don’t Lose Your Breath.

There are a number of breathing exercises in the post that may help out.

Flu and Stomach Illness

However, if you are throwing up or experiencing constant bowel movements you may have the flu. Or, if not the flu you may be experiencing a virus similar to the common flu.

Unlike having a simple cold, having the flu is a bit more serious.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, typical symptoms of the flu are (but not limited to):

- Fever / feverish chills
- Headache
- Runny nose
- Difficulty sleeping
- Coughing
- Chest congestion
- Vomiting and diarrhea (more common in children)
- Fatigue

Reading the symptoms listed above can be very disheartening. After all, many of the symptoms relate directly to systems in our body we rely heavily on for a successful marathon (or half).

We’ve all known the feeling of congested lungs with the flu; it feels like your breathing in and out while gargling water. In other words, it can be difficult to breath well.

If thinking of this in the context of running you may have a more difficult time surmounting a flu than a cold.

Furthermore, outside of feeling worse than normal, a flu can hinder aspects of your physiology that can impact your race day or knock you out of the competition.

If the flu has been upsetting your stomach and forcing you into frequent bowel movements or vomiting, your cumulative hydration is being impacted.

As a result, you will have to fight extra hard to maintain hydration and nutrient intake if sick with the flu a week before your race.

Allergies

While appearing less serious than a cold or flu, allergies can be difficult to manage, and can cause real issues for the proper functioning of your body. Allergies come in many forms, but for the purpose of this post we are referring to the “hay fever or mold” type of allergies.

According to the Mayo Clinic, common symptoms for “hay fever” are:

- Sneezing (sometimes continual)
- Itchy nose, eyes, and roof of the mouth
- Runny and / or stuffy nose
- Watery eyes
- Red swollen eyes

Plus, allergy management is especially difficult for trail runners.

For instance, trail runners put themselves in the thick of the elements not only on race day, but throughout their weeks of training.

Doctors can prescribe helpful allergy medicines. However, this can be a reluctant path for many to take and can take months or years to manage successfully.

If running in a trail marathon, however, medication may end up being the best option since one of the other recommended paths for treating allergies is to avoid the trigger.

Avoiding the trigger may not be possible if your trigger is pollen and your run is outside.

Additionally, if you’re willing to work through the sniffling, allergies don’t have to keep you from your marathon.

We usually pop a non-drowsy Zyrtec or Claritin, stuff a handkerchief into the belt and take tylenol for any headaches before start time.

Acid Reflux

Finally, it’s entirely possible that your symptoms are caused by a rough night of carb loading or drinking.

Furthermore, if you down carbonated waters for hydration, you could be making the problem worse.

For instance, trigger foods, eating too fast, eating too late, or eating too close to physical activity, may promote post nasal drip.

In fact, post nasal drip can irritate your throat including your vocal chords, which can give the impression of sickness.

Fortunately, occasional acid reflux and its symptoms can be easily remedied by:

staying hydrated
avoiding acidic foods like tomato, onion, garlic, vinegar, chocolate, alcohol, caffeine, and carbonated beverages
avoiding deep bending after eating
ceasing all eating at least 3 hours before bed
elevating the head of you bed 6 inches
try meditating to reduce stress and nerves

Even better, most of these aren’t essential foods or activities for race day.

During the week you feel crummy, we’ve found that antihistamines like Zyrtec help calm the inflammation that is triggered leaving you feeling so crummy.

Additionally follow the advise above to avoid further reflux and talk to your doctor about a formal diagnosis for management.

And consider taking an antacid like Pepcid 30 minutes before meals and 30 minutes prior to race time.

Rest The Week Before Is Priority

As you may know, additional fitness is not going to be gained in the final days leading up to a marathon or half marathon.

For this reason the primary focus should be recovering from sickness.

Focus on sleeping well, hydrating, eating well, and reducing your symptoms so you begin to focus more on the race itself.

When is it Time to Withdraw?

Withdrawing from a race because of sickness is a decision only you and your physician can come to.

Most generally, an ailment the week leading up to a race isn’t cause to drop out unless you risk severe dehydration.

Mind Games When Sick

Usually, our minds inflate the perceived impacts symptoms are causing.

So, remember that while our outward symptoms are expressed in discomfort, the physiological workings of our body honed by training, are still intact.

Training Prepared you... Even if you're Sick

Additionally, if you plan to push through sickness to race in a marathon or half marathon, it is important to remember that you have trained for this event. Being sick doesn’t change that. A week long sickness won’t wipe months of training away.

The key parts of your body and mind are still in tact, and beneath that sniffling mess is a beast of runner ready to prove to your sickness who’s boss.

Furthermore, physical activity does wonders toward beating many sicknesses. Afterall, fresh air is sometimes the best medicine.

Run Things By a Physician (Again)

With the above being said, it is likely a very good idea to consult your physician before making the final call.

You are in ultimate control of what your final decision will be.

However, to make sure you’re not making any long term detrimental decisions a quick doctors visit or telehealth is a good idea.

Pumping Yourself Up For The Race

Moreover, it is difficult to get excited for a race if you’re not a hundred percent. In fact, sometimes it is hard enough getting excited when you do feel 100%. Completing a marathon event while sick requires a lot of mental toughness. But there are some ways to work yourself up for the main event. One mental trick is to definitely show up on race day.

In my experience, once on the site of a race, the swell of adrenaline is difficult to avoid. So, if you are unsure whether you will be able to race because you just feel too crummy, show up anyways. Adrenaline and being around your peers might just be the best way to get you out on the course. Plus, bring a kit to help you make it through. Include allergy meds, Dayquil, lots of water and handkerchiefs.

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Image Credit: Alan | (source) | Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0)