Hey everyone, Tyler here – Today I would usually be gearing up all morning for my afternoon workout with Maria. Unfortunately, I am feeling under the weather and have been for the past few days. Instead of throwing weights around (with proper technique of course) in the RevCon gym, I am laid up on the couch. That sparked me to get on and write a little blog post about being sick and how it affects you on the ice.
Everyone is bound to experience some type of cold, sore throat, or just not feeling yourself at some point during the season. I am going to give you a few quick tips on how to approach this so that you can get back to 100% as well as keeping your teammates in the clear.
The most important thing is being able to be okay with what you will lose in the short term but gain back in the long term. What I mean by that is missing a few practices or games to rest up, hydrate, and pump your body full of fluids. Practicing or playing at 60% is only going to limit your abilities and ultimately hurt yourself and your team. Taking that short term loss will get you back to 100% quicker and help you and your team succeed in the long run.
Taking that time off to rest your body is exactly as it sounds. Getting to bed on time, and drinking lots of fluids are just a few things that will help your body recover quicker. Going to bed at 1am, drinking and eating unhealthy are exactly what you don’t want to do, this will defeat the purpose of taking those practices and games off to get healthy.
When you feel you are ready to return to practice and games you still have to take caution with your actions. Marking a personal water bottle that only you will drink from is one way to make sure that you are not spreading your germs to other members of your team. Hockey is a team sport so making sure your teammates are not getting affected is part of your job and will impact the overall success of your team.
Getting sick is one of the worst things that can happen to a hockey player next to being injured. Don’t think you have to “push” through it when you are feeling 60%. No one will think you aren’t tough enough or letting the team down if you take some time off. If you get that feedback from another player then they are not a very good teammate.
Short term loss will ultimately be a gain in the long term. The hockey season is a grind and coming to terms with losing some ice time in the short term will turn into long term success for you and your team.
T