What to do About an Energy Zapping Cold

Last Sunday I mentioned that I had caught an upper respiratory thing, and here I am 5 days later, sniffling as I type. I don’t get sick that often, and this damn cold is really putting a damper on my week.

Okay okay, I realize I may sound like a total brat saying that about a silly cold, but this thing is really zapping my energy. I would like to be back to normal pronto!

I started to think today about the things I do to get better ASAP when I catch a cold. I know that my best defense in not getting sick in the first place is my healthy lifestyle — eating well, getting enough sleep, exercising daily. When I start to feel something coming on, I definitely try to take even better care of myself to prevent it from getting worse. But once I have a full-blown cold, I don’t have much confidence that anything I do speeds up the process of getting it out of my system. However, because I hate feeling under the weather so much (though I suppose no one enjoys it!), I always attempt to get better by doing more of the following – pretty common sense – things:

Food

I really believe that food can be a powerful form of medicine. When I’m not feeling great, I amp up the amount of veggies and fruits I’m eating and try to get as many vitamins and antioxidants as possible into my system. Today’s breakfast included Greek yogurt with berries, and lunch and dinner were both produce packed salads.

Lunch: chopped fennel, nectarine, figs, walnut pieces, and balsamic vinegar

Vitamin C 

When it comes to curing a cold, getting Vitamin C is a must. I rely on these Emergen-C packs to give me a daily dose and then some…

Sleep

It’s a no-brainer, but sleep is so important in recovering from being sick. Last night I went to bed early and slept 9 hours! Sure, I have NyQuil to thank for knocking me out, but I definitely think I need to sleep more than usual to get back to 100%.

Green Tea

I’ve been making sure to drink a couple cups of green tea daily. A source of powerful antioxidants, the hot tea also feels great on my itchy, sore throat.

Move a Bit

Though my inclination when I’m feeling sick is to curl up on the couch 24/7, I have been partaking in light exercise all week. Yes, I’m taking it easy, but I also think it’s a good idea to get my body moving. This week I’ve gone for long walks with Harley, done yoga, and biked at a lower resistance than usual, all of which have made me feel a little better.

Salty Water? 

My grandma swears by gargling with warm salt water to cure a sore throat. I happen to believe that it helps rid germs that are just coming along, but don’t really know that it helps once I’ve gotten full blown sick.

Question: Do you have any cold remedies that you swear by? If so please share!

Off to relax and hopefully get an ample amount of sleep!