Hi! So I contacted you back in November and I just wanted to say thank you for replying, it helped quite a lot. Spring season started today (March 7th) but I’ve been out for 3 weeks with sinusitis, which I still have. I came back to practice last week but I’m only slowly improving day by day. I’ve tried the workouts but I cannot breathe at all if I’m sprinting or putting a lot of work into the piece. My coach is super okay with me feeling 100% better but it might take another full week. I’m coughing and cannot run either. I missed all of the 2k work but I know that I might not get out on the water until I do a 2k…but that might be a little while. I’m a junior as well so I know worrying about getting back into this won’t help but I just really wanna get better. Maybe I’m just asking you to let me know that I’m on the recovery and improving each day? Or maybe I’m asking you for help? I’m not really sure but it feels good to type this up. It seems as if I am allergic to winter.

Do you have allergies? I did pretty bad when I was in high school and they were always worse in the winter because the air was drier and I was spending more time inside with the allergens that affected me the most, which were dust and pet dander. My allergies in general haven’t been nearly as bad since I moved to Boston but they’re always noticeably worse in the winter regardless. Dust, dander, and the low humidity are relatively easy to manage though – humidifiers are great and as long as you wash your bedding regularly you can keep dander (pet and human) to a minimum. I make it a point to avoid noticeably dusty areas (more so at the boathouse than at home) and that helps a lot too. I think sinusitis (or what we initially thought was sinusitis) and my incessant coughing was what prompted my doctor to recommend seeing an allergy specialist to my parents when I was in middle school so you might consider seeing one if you haven’t/don’t already. They might be able to prescribe you a different/better medication (aka the good kind of steroids) that helps you manage whatever’s going on and gets you back to being able to workout.

You’re definitely in a more fortunate position than most people in that your coach is cool with you waiting until you’re 100% before you resume practicing – that alone should be a huge weight off your shoulders. I get wanting to get back as soon as possible but if you’ve already got the all-clear to take your time and get better, take advantage and do just that. I’d talk with your coach though to determine what’s required for you to be able to get on the water once you are healthy and then come up with some sort of modified training plan that you can follow if one of those requirements is a 2k. In the mean time, try to do something like pilates, yoga, core, etc., that way you’re still getting a workout in but you’re not taxing your body to the point where you experience trouble breathing. If you’re comfortable swimming you could try doing that as well and seeing if it’s easier to get a harder workout in in an environment where the air’s not as dry as outside, at the boathouse, etc.

Being sick sucks and sometimes there is little you can do about it but as long as you’re getting enough sleep, taking care of yourself, and staying in tune with how your body feels day to day, eventually you’ll get back to where you were. Don’t rush it though – patience is a #majorkey to getting back to 100% and not setting yourself up to get injured or sick(er) in the future.