Training 1 week after the illness
Snot and sniffles are over. But instead of picking up your old training plan straight away, you should start easy. In the first week after recovering from illness, only cycle twice. Your heart rate is best at 65-75 per cent of your maximum heart rate. Ride briefly and slowly with a one-minute hard effort to test how your heart rate reacts. If your resting heart rate or training heart rate (at the same load as before the illness) is still very high, this is a clear sign that you are not yet 100 per cent recovered. Training time: maximum two hours.
Training 2 week after the illness
In the second week, you continue to acclimatise your body to the increasing load. You can get back on your bike three times - for a maximum of three hours each time. During this week, collect easy basic kilometres (60-80 percent of your maximum heart rate). If you want to go faster, you should only train briefly at 85 per cent of your maximum heart rate. To ensure that your recovery and exertion progresses perfectly, you should train alone so that you can better regulate the intensity. You wouldn't be the first person to fall ill with friends, as ambition demands more performance. Make sure you get enough rest here too.
Training 3 week after the illness
Your body feels fit again and your resting heart rate is at a low level every morning? That's good, but you shouldn't go to the absolute limit in the third week. However, you can continue with your usual training programme. If you want, you can also stand on the starting line of a race to step on the gas again. The important thing here is to ride with the handbrake on rather than revving up in the red zone. Think of the race as an easy way to get back into the swing of things. If you still feel tired, use this week as a rest week and reduce your training by 30 per cent (from the old training plan).
In Bike 11/2016, we show you how to keep your defences in good shape and get through the cold and wet season without getting sick. You can also read the complete issue in the BIKE app (iTunes and Google Play) or in the DK shop order:
