Train Smarter not Harder

With an ever increasing focus in today’s society on healthy living and the benefits that accompany it, it would be fair to assume that most of us now acknowledge the fact that exercise can lead to a diverse range of health benefits.  These benefits can be as little as improving your body’s functionality so that you are capable of performing everyday tasks with greater ease, to increasing your cardiovascular function and/or capacity and potentially making you less susceptible to life threatening conditions.  Regardless of what it is that provides us with the motivation we need to become more active, as a whole we appear to be taking a positive step in the right direction towards becoming a more active society.  However, with an overwhelming amount of support being thrown at us about the benefits of exercising, it is easy for us to become so focused on doing more, that we fail to remember one of the simple rules in life: “too much of anything can be bad”, and yes, this does apply to exercise!

As an abundance of support flows for increasing the regularity of exercise, it is easy to see why we might fail to recognise the symptoms that our bodies present us with when we do in fact begin to do too much.   As we ignore the cries from our body as they plea in desperation for us to slow down, we become susceptible to falling into a state of exhaustion, where exercise can begin to do more damage than good.

That’s why here at Transcend Health and Fitness, all of our training is periodised to ensure that every one of our members trains smarter, not necessarily harder!

What is overtraining?

Overtraining can be best described as a condition that occurs when we are doing more than what our bodies are not necessarily capable of doing, but what our bodies are capable of progressively adapting to and recovering from.

Why would this occur?

Without going into a great level of detail, positive adaptation to exercise occurs when we train, recover and then train again.  As our bodies adapt to whatever type of stimulus we impose upon ourselves (by allowing for adequate recovery in between sessions) we progressively increase this stimulus, so that as we continue to exercise, we get fitter, stronger and healthier.  In other words, we adapt to the stresses imposed from exercise.  If however, we ignore these two fundamental principles (progressive overload and recovery) and we start training at a rate where we either jump into too much too soon, or we simply put ourselves under more stress than our bodies can positively adapt too, then chances are you will find yourself in a position where you are overtraining.

There can be a multitude of variables involved in overtraining and it is rare that you will find that overtraining comes as a result of a single influencing factor.  Whilst there are no set rules that will eliminate this problem from occurring, by attaining an understanding of how some of the most common factors involved can cause this condition, you may be able to monitor your training regime a little more precisely and hopefully prevent the condition from developing to a point where you need to cease training altogether.

Progressive overload

This concept of training is based on placing a specific amount of stress on your body, allowing your body to adapt to this stress, then once you adapt, progressively increase the stress.  Theoretically this method of training can be practiced day after day, year after year, decade after decade.  However, this is based on the notion that you allow your body to adapt before progressively increasing the level of stress.  Sounds simple really, but there are two very important variables involved.

Number 1.  Allowing your body to adapt before increasing the intensity.  If you do not allow yourself to adapt to the stress you impose on your body before you increase the amount of stress you place on it, then you are almost guaranteed to reach a point where your body will begin to “break” and your training will begin to spiral downwards.

Number 2.  Progressively increasing the level of stress or intensity.  If you do not remember that positive adaptation comes as a result of “progressive overload” not “overload” then once again, you will find yourself trying to do too much too soon and running yourself into the ground.

Recovery

Recovery is defined in the dictionary as “restoration or return to any former and better state or condition”.  The importance that recovery holds is that if utilized correctly, it allows for us to continually progress.  Contrarily, if it is not utilized correctly and we fail to recover, then we fail to progress.

There is no universal rule as to how long it takes to recover as there are too many variables involved and everyone is different.  However, whatever type of training it is that you are doing, if you refer back to the definition above and use it as your rule of recovery, then you will be heading in the right direction.  “After placing any kind of stress on your body, do not place the same stress onto your body again until “restoration or return to any former and better state or condition” has occurred.  Meaning that post training, do not repeat what you have just done unless you feel the same, or better than what you did before you trained.

While there are other variables that can lead to overtraining, the aforementioned can almost be classified as the fundamentals as all other variables seem to coincide in some way or from with these.  For example, inadequate nutrition can be a significant factor in regards to overtraining.  If you fail to supply your body with the nutrients needed to recover from training, you will fail to recover.  Hormonal imbalances can be another significant factor, however changes in your bodies hormone levels can often come as a result of stress placed upon the body or not allowing for adequate recovery.

  Although the whole notion of overtraining is directly related to fitness training, it is important to remember that there are also many external influences that, when combined with exercise can lead to this condition.

Stress for example is not only physical but can be mental, whereas the amount of sleep we have can directly impact how we recover from training.  Alcohol, excess caffeine consumption, personal relationships or the common cold can all have a negative impact on us.  Any external factor that can influence how we feel or act can amplify our susceptibility to over training so needs to be taken into careful consideration when determining what type of training we are going to undergo.  At the end of the day, if you are feeling tired, lethargic or overly stressed, then a day off training is probably going to be far more beneficial to your health and wellness than training itself.

What are the symptoms of Over-training?

There are many different symptoms that may or may not occur as a result of over-training.  Each of which are equally important as one another.  There is no single method of determining if you are over-training or not and depending on the individual, you may experience one, or every one of these symptoms.  On the contrary, the symptoms listed below are common symptoms and over-training is not limited to these symptoms.  You may not experience any of these, but a range of other symptoms and could still be overtraining.

• Constant feeling of dehydration
• Constantly feeling tired or exhausted
• Decreased cognitive function
• Constant joint soreness
• Constant muscle soreness
• Decrease in performance
• Decreased motivation
• Delayed recovery from exercise
• Elevated resting heart rate
• Headaches
• Decrease in sex drive or sexual function
• Increased susceptibility to sickness
• Insomnia
• Waking up still feeling exhausted after a full nights sleep
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss

How to identify if you are over-training?

While measuring whether you are over-training or not can be a difficult task, there are a few simple methods used to help determine whether you are in fact overtraining.
The simplest method being going through the list of symptoms and seeing whether or not many of these apply to you.  This is by no means suggesting that if you have one or two of these symptoms you are over-training, but if you are finding that majority of these symptoms fit your situation, then it might be beneficial for you to rest.

Measuring your resting heart rate first thing in the morning.  If you know what your normal resting heart rate is, then when you wake up first thing in the morning (when you are in a relaxed state), measure your heart rate.  If you find that your heart rate is comparably elevated by more than 5 beats per minute for a few consecutive days, then this is an indication that you are overtraining.

How to recover from overtraining

As outlined earlier, positive adaptations to exercise occur when we train, recover and then train again.  Rest is the best way to recover from this and depending on the severity of the condition, the amount of rest will vary.  For some, resting for a few days will be sufficient, whilst for others, weeks or even months of little or no training may be required.  In cases where you feel as if your body is consistently exhausted, then complete rest and adequate nutrition whilst resting is the best method to cure yourself from this.  To recover from overtraining, we need to ensure that our recovery outweighs the amount we are doing.  In other words, a balance needs to be reestablished between the amount we do and the amount we rest (recover).  At the end of the day, if you have been overtraining then you need to recover.  If we once again go back to the rule of recovery (as outlined earlier), then you cannot go wrong.  After placing any kind of stress on your body, do not place the same stress onto your body again until “restoration or return to any former and better state or condition” has occurred.

Conclusion

Whilst in the past, overtraining has been closely associated with elite athletes and sport professionals, the condition is not limited to this demographic, nor is it only common in those who train themselves at ridiculously intense levels.  Regardless of what your level of fitness is, or what it is you do, anyone who is training can suffer from this condition.  Overtraining is relative to how fit we are, what type of training we do and how we recover from training and should therefore, not be a condition isolated to athletes and professional sports people.  While overtraining is a common condition that can be experienced by anyone who is exercising, different steps can be implemented to prevent the condition from occurring and if the condition already exists, it can certainly be cured.  Remember, train smarter, not harder and you will benefit accordingly.