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BExSS (CEP) ESSAM Rachel Evans
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Exercise Physiologist and Owner, RE.connection Project
Overtraining occurs when your training load exceeds the rate at which your body can repair itself; essentially, when people train too much and too hard without adequate recovery. It’s not something that happens overnight – it often takes weeks to months before your body starts ringing alarm bells! Overtraining can start to develop in the lead-up to an event (such as a competition) or when training becomes an obsession, and you begin to adopt a ‘more is more’ approach, eventually causing you to crash and burn.
The difference between progressive overload (an important principle that ensures you’re challenging your body and forcing it to adapt) and overtraining comes down to execution. An effective, quality training program always allows for rest days or deload weeks. Your training should be making you fitter, stronger or leaner (depending on your goal), but not at the expense of your mental and physical health. So how do you know when you’re starting to push into the danger zone?
• Feeling washed out, drained, tired. • More muscle soreness than normal. • Workouts feeling harder than they normally would. • Getting sick more often. • Decreased training performance. • Moodiness and irritability. • Becoming more prone to injury. • Irregularities in your menstrual cycle. • Depressive symptoms. S The typical symptoms of overtraining are:
My tips for preventing overtraining include: 1. Utilise periodisation in line with your goals to balance overload, rest and progress. 2. Fuel your body appropriately before and after training. 3. Drink enough water throughout the day. 4. Have rest days (aim for at least one to two per week). 5. Manage your capacity and daily commitments – stress to the body is both mental and physical, and doesn’t just occur in the gym. Evans ’ advice
