I would say you should skip the gym if you're contagious. It's rude to other patrons.
Take the deload/more rest days. Are you prepping for any sort of upcoming competition? If you are not, deloading for a week will not affect your long term gains. Rest more and recover properly to come back stronger. All the best for your finals!
I am not prepping for any comp, So will a one week deload be more than enough? Ik it’s probably best to see myself if I am recovered, but I don’t want to get only partially recovered and then start training heavily again, so I am kinda trying to find a rough time frame, or some sort of cue of how to know I am fully recovered, one week seems to be the general rule, but like I described, there are a quite a bit of extra factors here
All the best for your finals!
Thanks a lot!
Edit: I am actually a relatively new lifter if that is of any help
If it's a matter of illness like a cold or the flu, definitely stay out of the gym till that gets better. Else take the 1 week deload, then you can either continue your program, or switch out your training block to a different periodization phase.
https://exrx.net/Sports/Periodization
You can also introduce variations to your lifts e.g more tempo squats or paused squats to work on your weaknesses or your form.
Don't forget to hydrate, sleep and eat well!
I’m no expert, but I like to workout in cycles. When I’m lifting heavy and start to plateau, I will tend to switch to a high rep lower weight program for 2-4 weeks. Then start back on heavy lifting, starting a bit lower and working my way back up.
It works for me, but everyone is different. Good luck in your journey!
Edit: when I’m feeling sick, I’ll take really light days. Stretch only, or do some very light weights. I try not to push it while sick and prefer to just rest.