Gimme a Break

 

If you’re just beginning a workout and/or running routine, you might be working out three to four days a week. You might even be getting in five or six. You are probably not exercising every day of the week. In fact, I’d advise that you don’t. Like the sound of that, right?

Then there’s the other type of exerciser, the one who has been at it for a while, the one who was seeing progress but might be hitting a plateau and not seeing much change, or the one who feels like if she pushes a little harder, she’ll reach some goal quicker. Sometimes we get so deep into a training plan and so motivated by our progress that we forget that our bodies need rest. What happens if we go, go, go and don’t rest? Overtraining and injuries can result.

Overtraining Syndrome is when your body is fatigued and overworked. Instead of making progress, you may see a decline, such as your running pace slowing down. If bodies don't have time to repair from a work out, the muscles never get rebuilt and become weaker and more prone to injury. Want another reason to take a rest day each week? Overtraining Syndrome can even increase fat by increasing your levels of the stress hormone cortisol! So while it’s awesome if you get really motivated in your training, you should also be aware of physical indicators of overtraining and rest when necessary.

Here is a list of common physical effects associated with overtraining. If you are working out every day and notice that you have more than one of these symptoms, you may want to take a day or two off each week instead of training daily.

• Increased irritability or even depression
• Insatiable thirst
• Insomnia
• Headaches
• Muscle soreness for days after an intense workout (soreness should begin to lessen after 2-3 days)
• Immune system lowered (getting sick easily or over and over)
• Higher resting heart rate (your heart rate before you get out of bed in the morning) or sometimes lower resting heart rate, depending on the type of overtraining (endurance athletes like runners may more likely see a decrease, whereas those who are overtraining with strength training will likely see an increase in resting heart rate)

What do you do if you feel like overtraining might be the reason your performance is tanking? Take a full week off, decrease training volume when you do go back to it, eat well, and get 7-9 hours of sleep each night to allow your body to properly recover. And don’t compare yourself to your buddy. What she can handle each week might not be what your body can handle. Train hard but train smart.

The following final note about recovering from overtraining comes from: http://www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/overtraining.html

The longer you overtrain, the worse its effects and the longer it will take to recover. "The treatment for the overtraining syndrome is rest. The longer the overtraining has occurred, the more rest [that is] required. Therefore, early detection is very important. If the overtraining has only occurred for a short period of time (e.g., 3 - 4 weeks), then interrupting training for 3 - 5 days is usually sufficient rest. After this, workouts can be resumed on an alternate day basis. The intensity of the training can be maintained but the total volume must be lower. [...] The alternate day recovery period is continued for a few weeks and then an increase in volume is permitted. In more severe cases, the training program may have to be interrupted for weeks, and it may take months to recover. An alternate form of exercise can be substituted to help prevent the exercise withdrawal syndrome."

So a person who is having overtraining symptoms from running every day but who doesn’t want to totally quit working out might substitute riding a bike, yoga, or lifting weights or a combination of different exercises every other day to keep active and keep his/her body in good condition until running can resume. Running volume (mileage/days a week) should then be decreased when it is resumed to prevent overtraining from recurring.

How to Prevent Overtraining in the First Place!

• Gradually increase physical activity. 
• Don't do the same exercise every day.
• Take a complete rest day once a week.
• Cross train - work out some way that is different from your normal routine.
• Mix high intensity interval training with low intensity endurance training throughout your week.

 If you begin to feel excessive fatigue or irritability, you can log your workouts, resting heart rate (it’s good to know what’s normal BEFORE you feel like you might be overtraining!), how you feel each day, and how difficult the workout felt to monitor progress and ward off overtraining before it puts you out of service with illness or an injury. If you have several consecutive days of very difficult workouts and your heart rate seems off, then rest up.

Best wishes on a positive training experience and reaching your goals in a healthy, safe way!

Article by Cyrena Shows.  Visit Love the Fit Life for more great tips and advice.