With most things in life, you get out what you put in. However, when it comes to fitness, there is a point where pushing yourself actually does more harm than good to your wellbeing. Though you may be aware of this as a concept, there are eight signs of overtraining that people commonly experience, but don’t realise it’s a signal to stop.
Firstly, you find that you simply can’t finish a proper workout. Whether you don’t have the energy to run your normal route, or the strength to lift the weights you’re always lifting, training too hard can make you feel progressively weaker, slower, and more lethargic – which is the opposite of what you want! This goes hand-in-hand with the second sign that you’re overdoing it: you’re training hard every single day. No one can lift heavy weights or sprint hard every day and adequately recover, and so it’s crucial that you take one day where you don’t do any exercise at all, and two more when you avoid lifting weights.
The third sign of overtraining is that you’re getting fatter despite training hard. Overtraining throws your hormones out of whack, meaning that your testosterone levels plunge and cortisol levels rise. This causes your muscle tissue to break down, which, in turn, increases your insulin resistance and fat deposition. This means that you’ll put on weight, no matter how closely you watch your diet.
If you overdo it on the aerobic or weight lifting exercises, this can cause your sympathetic nervous system to remain excited at all times and you’ll have more trouble sleeping, and feel sluggish during the day. Another sign of overtraining is odd aches and pains in your joints, bones, or limbs, which may require you to take a few days off so that you can recover, and not do any more damage.
Overtraining can also throw your wellness off balance, and disrupt your immune system. As long as you’re getting the right balance of sugar, vitamin D, sleep and relaxation, inexplicable little coughs, sniffles, congestions, or headaches may be a sign you need to take a rest week and let your immune system build back up. Finally, if you feel irritable and uncomfortable after what would otherwise be a normal, healthy work out, take a few days off so you can have that endorphin-boosting feeling again.
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