Nice to see 20min spins being mentioned. It’s how I gauged my recovery. Around a week after my first spin I did an hour outside all the time capping my heart rate to a really sensible level.
I blocked of a month to slowly progress back up to decent training levels and in fact got there by the end of the third week. I’m sure taking it really carefully to begin with paid dividends.
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This may be of interest to long haulers .
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Fortunately, it seems that the heart complications are not as bad as initially thought. See this March 2021 article in JAMA Cardiology that shows that only 0.6% of athletes post-covid experienced serious heart problems.
This chimes with my experience. I mentioned on another thread but I had COVID, with pretty mild symptoms, in February and though that would en the end of it. However, the next 3 months proved difficult with 5/10+ bpm increase in resting HR, bouts of chest tightness, pain down my sides and inability to train. Had the vaccine at the beginning of May (2nd shot 2 weeks after first) and now I’m pretty much back to normal with all the COVID hangover symptoms gone. Might be entirely coincidental, with post-viral fatigue just having run it’s course, though.
Been training for the last month and I actually feel great, pretty sure the 3 month break has, perversely done me the power of good.
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I’m 16 days out from symptom onset (had it bad for a couple days but felt pretty good by day 7 with only some nasal congestion and loss of smell/taste lingering) and have been attempting some Z2 workouts for the last week. My HR is up quite a bit from what I would expect, drifting into tempo zone despite me doing everything I can to keep it down (breathing, cooling, hydration, etc.). It’s a bit concerning and I don’t plan on pushing past Z2 until I see an improvement. But I’m wondering if even these Z2 workouts are doing more harm then good? Should I just take some more time completely off the bike or is it ok to be doing 30-60min Z2 workouts every other day?
I had Covid back in Feb and experienced similar aftereffects (increase in resting HR and disassociation of HR from power). I tried to push through and keep doing Z2 stuff but kept experiencing the symptoms. In the end I took 2 months off the bike and let my lungs and heart completely rest. I feel great now and am putting better numbers out than I have for along time
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i had covid at the beginning of the year. Got out of hospital on Dec 30th after being there for 3nights. Was fortunate that i never needed supplement oxygen or worse, intubated. i was admitted by my primary care dr for double pneumonia and shortness of breath. was on steroids for 2wks to control inflammation and blood thinner as a precaution for blood clots. after those round of meds i had to get cleared by my dr. luckily he’s a sports physician for local professional team. He used same protocol as athlete and ran multiple test to check hear and all other organ functions . i was finally cleared to get after mid Feb. Not saying this is the norm but since my dr knew how active i am he thought it best to side with caution. i didnt start to feel normal till about March and even still felt i was behind.
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My resting heart rate and HRV are back to pre-COVID levels. It’s just on the bike that I notice a difference. I’d hate to take extended time off but at the same time I know I’ve got to put my long term health first.
Do you mind sharing what tests were done? I’ve been thinking of contacting my doc to have tests run but I’m afraid of just being written off. He’s not a sports physician and don’t think he would understand how important cycling and endurance sports are in my life.
Has anyone had experience with Paxlovid antiviral?
Yeah, I’d say it’s fine to split that one into a separate topic.
Guess I’m in the minority here. Today is 16 days from 1st symptoms. I’ve done 3 hard group rides on day 10, 13 and 15 and riding/feeling good. Best 1 min power this year which is stupid as I’ve started 24 races this year. On the day 13 group I won the final sprint (4 of 4) and bagged three Strava top tens. No a big deal but, I ride these often and attempts are 60k+ with close to 4k+ people attempting. Strange this one ride yielded what it did…Anyways, lots of max efforts from 5 seconds to 10 minutes over and over and over. I don’t have the durability but, I don’t feel weak/bad either.
Enforced rest has enabled you to achieve a freshness never seen when you are training normally?
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Obviously I can not say for sure. The 1 min best was actually on day 1 with symptoms (very mild) and didn’t know it was covid. So, coming into that day I can say rest was the same as my normal life.
Interesting you should pick on my post from 2yrs ago, as I’ve just had and recovered from covid for the first time - and I would definitely agree with my 2020 self:
“Don’t play catch up, and speak to a doctor for medical advice, if you can!
For any illness, come back gently - it’s not like there’s any hurry now is there?”
Well, after 2.5 years, and 3 shots, I’ve managed to appear to have covid! Did a home test last night that came up positive. Currently only symptom is sinus congestion. No other symptoms. Symptom showed up Sunday morning, right after a race that I set all new 4/5/6 hour power PR’s. RHR is still normal. Hopefully it resolves quickly with out much damage, My A event is in 6 weeks 
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Covid is very prevalent at the moment and I managed to pick it up from someone at work towards the end of last week. I was unaware as he only tested on the Saturday and by then I was engaged on a 600km audax. I rode straight through and although I wasn’t happy with my performance I did finish with 6 hours to spare so doubt it had much of an effect if any. However although mild and able to work I do suffer from a cough, night sweats and occasional shivering but no loss of taste or trouble breathing. My heart rate is pretty low and HRV much as usual and probably more affected by the ride. The question is given that in 4 weeks time I have to do LEL (1500) how long should I rest before getting training again. It would be great to hear from people who have experienced the same and how they handled it.
I moved your post under one that has a fair bit of discussion. And here is another with plenty of info:
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Thanks Chad, Sean