For the exercise addicts among us, only intractable pain or an act of God forestalls a workout session. But even the most tried-and-true exercise fiend will tell you that a nasty cold has a way of slowing them down, to the point where they question whether or not exercise is making their cold symptoms worse.

And herein lies the question exercise-a-holics often pose when a cold comes ashore: “Should the only thing running right now be my nose, or should I strap on my Asics and run along with my snot-infested schnoz?”

And herein lies the question exercise-a-holics often pose when a cold comes ashore: “Should the only thing running right now be my nose, or should I strap on my Asics and run along with my snot-infested schnoz?”

This is a question I’ve wondered myself, and no doubt you have as well. In virtually every instance, I’ve done the latter: went ahead and exercised.

While this question hasn’t been studied to any great extent recently, it was 10 years ago, and published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. Both studies were spearheaded by Ball State University’s Leonard Kaminsky, who was interviewed recently by The New York Times on the topic.

The first study assessed the question of whether a cold affected performance levels for the average athlete suffering from a cold. An assessment of this involved testing participants’ lung capacity and whether or not a cold decreased lung capacity or overall exertion capability. Kaminsky recruited 45 men and women between the ages of 18 and 29, all of whom with variations in overall athletic ability. He then randomly assigned the participants to groups, one of which had the unfortunate task of being infected with the rhinovirus.

At the start of the study, Kaminsky had the participants run on treadmills to see what their average performance level was. He then had the participants do the same thing several days into the testing period, only this time the rhinovirus-infected group had very apparent cold symptoms. Surprisingly enough, however, these cold-infected participants demonstrated little diminished lung or exercise capacity. In fact, as reported by a number of the participants with the rhinovirus, they felt a bit better after having exercised.

The surprising results didn’t end there, however. In a separate study with different participants, Kaminsky tested whether or not exercising prolonged cold symptoms, the theory being that the body is using up energy for exercise instead of reserving energy stores for antibodies’ usage. Once again, Kaminsky randomly assigned participants to groups (one group resting, another group exercising on treadmills), and also infected some of the volunteers with the rhinovirus.

Using questionnaires as his guide, not to mention snot rags for microbial assessment that cold-infected participants used throughout the study, Kaminsky found no difference between those that rested and those that exercised in regards to how long it took the participants to recover from their cold symptoms.

Here’s ammunition for any son or daughter whose doting mother pleaded with him or her not to exercise for fear it would prolong their runny noses and stubborn coughs.

But advice from well-intentioned moms may not have been entirely off-based. Colds differ in their intensity, from the manageable runny nose and stuffy head, to the more significant chest congestion, where the simple act of breathing proves difficult. In those instances, running shoes are best left on the shelf.

In short – use common sense. If you feel as though you can exercise (e.g. a mild cough and runny nose) I say go for it. The Ball State researchers’ findings show no adverse effects. But if your breathing patterns are labored while on the couch or in bed, aerobic activity – an activity that requires enormous amounts of oxygen – is best left for another day.