Should you truly get your sweat on after getting the jab, or should you sit this one out? The short answer: Sure, in most cases, it’s totally OK exercise after your COVID shot — as long as you’re feeling well enough. However, some of the more common vaccine side effects might impact your exercise plans, so it’s best to be aware of those — as well as how you can plan your physical activity around your vaccine— in order that you feel as good as possible.
Can I Exercise After The COVID-19 Vaccine?
If you had plans for joining a workout class directly after your vaccine, you may want to re-plan. Light exercise is fine however we generally recommend avoiding very hard exercise in the 48 hours post vaccination. This is on the foundation that a large proportion of individuals will develop some, usually minor, side effects (such as headache as well as muscle aches).
Research has found that 83% of young individuals who had the Pfizer vaccine reported local reactogenicity (in other words, arm aches) and 50% of people had systemic reactogenicity including fatigue as well as headache.
It is really not pleasant to try and exercise hard with these types of symptoms, so it’s best that you plan your training week around your vaccination as well as build in a couple of recovery days.
What Do You Need To Know About Exercising After A COVID-19 Vaccine?
First things first. There is probably not anything dangerous about exercising after you get the vaccine —even if you have some of the more painful side effects such as muscle aches or a mild fever. The only risk of performing exercise after a COVID-19 vaccine is that some of the side effects may lower the quality of your workout and make it less enjoyable overall. There is no evidence that exercising right before or right after the vaccine could impact the effectiveness of the vaccine.
As a rule of thumb, ensure that listen to your body. If, post-vaccination, you don’t feel well enough to exercise, make sure that you take a rest day. Missing your favourite Peloton class might suck but forcing yourself to break a sweat when you’re not feeling good is counterproductive. You’re not going to be able to perform your best.
Depending on the type as well as intensity of your side effects, you may elect to do a gentler style of your standard workout routine. For instance, if your arm is achy however the rest of your body feels fine, you may modify your full-body strength workout for it to be just a leg and core-focused routine. Or if you’re feeling a little lethargic, however still want to get some movement in, you might go on a long walk instead of your typical HIIT workout.
Is It Safe For You To Exercise After The Covid-19 Vaccine?
Exercising when you feel nauseous, fatigued, headachy or are suffering from muscle pain is not advised, if that’s through illness, a hangover, a vaccine or any other cause. As for whether your workout will impact your vaccine, there’s no known evidence for exercise to impact the effectiveness of the vaccine.
If you feel completely side-effect free, it is probably safe for you to exercise. However, given that side-effects can take a while to develop, there’s no need to push yourself. Stick to gentle exercise -such as walking – for 48 hours. Except if you are a very elite or professional athlete, there’s simply no need to exercise on the day of your COVID-19 appointment.
Remember that the COVID-19 vaccine doesn’t mean you are immune to coronavirus or can’t pass it on to other people, so if you do decide to go to the gym or play sport, ensure that you are training safely.
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