The Truth Behind Overtraining

Overtraining, a word that many people in the fitness industry try to ignore. Surely you can’t train too much, right? Wrong! We spoke to Justin Robinson to find out about the dangers of overtraining...

Although training too little can stop you seeing any real health benefits, training too much can actually cause negative health effects due to the lack of rest and recovery. The key is to find the right balance to ensure you are thriving and not depleting.

Justin Robinson a registered Sports Dietitian and Strength and Conditioning Coach tells us all about the truth behind overtraining and the signs too look out for:

“When it comes to exercise volume, there is a dose-response relationship, which means that the more you work out, the more benefits you will achieve, but there is a tipping point where the amount of exercise you perform can do more harm than good. This point can be reached by one or both of the following two ways:

1. Too much exercise without enough recover 2. Chronic underfueling

This tipping point is known as overtraining syndrome (OTS) and in short leads to a decrement in fitness level and possibly injury. Everyone is at risk for OTS, so recognising the early signs and combating them can prevent detrimental fitness and health outcomes.”

Here are nine signs of overtraining to look out for:

1.Decreased performance

“The tell-tale sign of overtraining is a lack of improved performance, despite an increase in training intensity or volume. Decreased agility, strength and endurance, such as slower reaction times and reduced running speeds are all common signs of overtraining.”

2. Increased perceived effort during workouts

“Not only can overtraining decrease performance, it can also make seemingly effortless workouts feel unusually difficult. A clear sign of this is an abnormally elevated heart rate during exercise or throughout the day. If you are experiencing OTS, you may find that it takes longer for your heart rate to return to normal after a workout.”

3. Excessive fatigue

“A few days of fatigue or ‘heavy legs’ is expected at times. But fatigue will accumulate in a body that never has a chance to fully recover from previous workouts. Further, chronic, negative energy expenditure leads to something called ‘low energy availability’, which means that the body is consistently pulling from its own energy stores (carbs, protein, fat). This can be the result of too much training or too little fueling.”

4. Agitation and moodiness

“Overtraining significantly affects your stress hormones, including cortisol and epinephrine. This hormonal imbalance can cause mood swings, unusual irritability and an inability to concentrate.”

5. Insomnia or restless sleep

“Sleep ideally provides the body time to rest and repair itself. But overproduction of stress hormones, as mentioned above, may not allow you to wind down or completely relax, making sleep much less effective (which compounds chronic fatigue and moodiness).”

6. Loss of appetite

“A hormone imbalance can also affect hunger and satiety mechanisms. More training should stimulate more appetite, but the physiological exhaustion of OTS can actually lead to appetite suppression.”

7. Chronic or nagging injuries

“Overused muscles and joints can cause constant aches or joint pain. Pain that does not subside in two weeks (or so) should be considered a notable injury. Overtraining taxes all of the body’s systems and also makes it more difficult to ward off infections. Thus, frequent illnesses and upperrespiratory tract infections (URTIs) are signs as well. Medical complications may also include low bone mineral density and low testosterone.”

8. Metabolic imbalances

“Long-term low energy availability may lead to nutrient deficiencies, such as iron deficiency Anaemia which have the potential to harm both health and performance. Medical complications can also involve the cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, endocrine, nervous or reproductive systems (e.g., menstrual cycle disturbances in women).”

9. Psychological stress and/or depression

“Some people live for punishing workouts and gruelling competitions. If this sounds like you, the inability to train or race (combined with an imbalance of hormones and lack of quality sleep) can significantly affect your psyche.”

When you have a strong passion for fitness it can be hard to take rest days and not over-train but it is important to keep your body thriving and in tip-top shape to decrease the risk of getting ill or injured. All it takes is a few rest days each week, proper nutrition and quality sleep to decrease your risk of overtraining.

However, it is important to understand the signs and symptoms of overtraining and ensuring you are taking the required rest to allow your body to recover fully and get you back to tip-top health. If your symptoms are severe then it’s best to seek professional help.

Ways to avoid overtraining:

1. Develop a training program that works for you

2. Follow your own training plan not anyone else’s

3. Set goals

4. Keep a training log

5. Eat properly

6. Sleep well

7. Deal with non-training stress, e.g. work, family, etc.

8. Stretch, ice, massage

9.Get a physical and blood tests every six months

10. Rest. Take a lease one day off each week

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