Pace your return to exercise, doing enough to stay within your energy reserves so as not to cause a

flare-up of symptoms.

A delicate balance has to be found between doing too much and not enough.

Consider exercising when there is literally no sign of any symptom. That is, when you feel 100 per cent back to normal.

Another option is graded exercise therapy, where activity is incrementally increased to improve exercise tolerance.

On the My Alberta Health website the recommendation is: “Pace yourself carefully as you recover so you don’t make your symptoms worse, get injured, or have any new symptoms. Stop and rest if your symptoms get worse during or after exercise. If you have any questions about exercise after COVID-19, feel worse or more tired the day after exercise, or have a racing or irregular heartbeat, talk to your healthcare provider or visit the Rehabilitation Advice Line on albertahealthservices.com

The 3 Ps in this case are:  Pace, Prioritize (When energy supplies are limited, you may need to make sure that the energy you use is spent on activities that are the most important to you. It may also be useful to identify what activities in your day are ), and Plan (When planning your day or week, spread your activities out rather than trying to fit them all in one day. Think about when your energy levels may be at their best and therefore completing high energy tasks at this time).

Some young people who had been infected, have said it may have been had overexertion too soon in their recovery that may triggered long Covid.

Long COVID so far has been defined as the presence of signs and symptoms that develop during or following COVID-19 which continue for 12 weeks or more. 

Typically, it is referred to as acute COVID-19 until four weeks and ongoing COVID-19 from four to 12 weeks. 

Most common symptoms after 6 months include fatigue and brain fog.

Other common symptoms: shortness of breath, chest pain or tightness, insomnia, heart palpitations, dizziness, muscle pain, joint pain, depression, anxiety, loss of appetite, a high temperature, cough, headaches, sore throat, changes to sense of smell or taste, and, rashes.

Slowly try to reincorporate exercise if you are feeling better. Because long Covid can manifest in different ways, individuals may need to tailor their programs.

For every person, long Covid is different so there’s probably never going to be a one-size-fits-all recommendation for exercise.

For many long Covid patients, experiencing worsening symptoms after exercise, which is sometimes called “post-exertional malaise,” is not uncommon.

This is a novel virus, and it may take years until we understand the true long-term impacts on those who have contracted it.

There is no one size fits all for the recommendation to return to exercise, you really need to listen to your body.