Some athletes and fitness enthusiasts not only try to give everything in every training, but also devote as much time and effort as possible to physical exercises. Objectively heavy loads for the body, such as crossfit and HIIT (high-intensity interval training with alternating aerobic and strength exercises), are becoming more popular every day, and many people begin to play sports five, six and even seven days a week. Sooner or later, such an enthusiast is not overtaken by the most pleasant consequence of excessive zeal - overtraining.
The symptoms of this condition are initially mild, and therefore not everyone can notice how the body signals: that's all, that's enough, it's time to rest. As a result, the body is overloaded, and the person is unable to undergo another training: all the forces seem to leave the body, depression or apathy sets in, appetite disappears or, on the contrary, thoughts about sports equipment and exercise equipment cause only irritation and anger. To prevent this from happening to you, be sure to listen to your own body: it will certainly tell you when the load will become excessive.
What is overtraining?
Symptoms of this condition are similar to less severe overvoltage. However, overstrain, especially when working with new free weights or increasing the load (for example, when switching from two-pound dumbbells to four-pound in home fitness), passes very quickly and usually does not cause much trouble. Overtraining, on the other hand, means that you work out too intensely and that your body is simply not able to recover from overly exhausting exercises. It may take weeks or even months to bounce back and eliminate the annoying symptoms of an athlete's overtraining.
Imagine that your body is an electric outlet, from which all types of everyday activities are charged. Any activity — no matter how intense — is the devices you plug into the outlet. If you plug in the same outlet plugs from a widescreen plasma TV, audio system, blender, lamp, microwave, electric guitar and treadmill, what happens? Of course, a short circuit will occur, and the whole system will fail. The human body functions by the same principle.
An electrical outlet is a metaphor for the central nervous system. It consists of the brain and spinal cord, which control the muscles through the supply of nerve impulses. In chronic stress (and any workout is stress for the body), nerve impulses weaken and lose their effectiveness, resulting in a wide variety of symptoms of overtraining.
The following circumstances may serve as factors accelerating the onset of overtraining syndrome: either you sharply increased the frequency of training, or increased the intensity and / or duration of classes, or ignore the need for rest and do not allow the body to recover normally. The ability to resist overtraining syndrome is predetermined by genetics and the total duration of playing sports throughout life.
Since all people engage in different ways, you should carefully monitor your own body. Of course, the symptoms of overtraining in bodybuilding will differ from the signs of overload in those who prefer athletics.
What to look for
Some signs of overload due to excessive exercise are more common than others. You can often find yourself with high blood pressure, loss of strength, increased number of injuries, decreased stamina, anxiety, fatigue, worsening athletic performance, reduced maximum heart rate, and even allergic reactions. Symptoms of overtraining in women often include changes in the menstrual cycle. Some alarms catch attention faster - they are listed below.
Symptom No. 1: lack of motivation
If all your drive and enthusiasm suddenly disappeared, your desire to play sports and even participate in any kind of active activity completely disappeared, then the body signals the need for rest and recovery, since you have already begun the phase of overstrain.
Of course, everyone has days when you just don't want to go to training. Even famous athletes sometimes do not feel any desire to perform routine exercises. However, if several days or even weeks have passed, and you are still sick of thinking about activity in the gym, you should listen to your body and allow yourself to relax from the load.
Symptom # 2: severe muscle pain after a long workout
Such symptoms of overtraining in bodybuilding and power sports do not always indicate overload - sometimes this is a sign of an insufficiently nutritious diet. If you consume enough protein, fat and complex carbohydrates and at the same time suffer greatly after training, it may be time to relax. How to distinguish such muscle pain from normal, following any physical activity? Like any symptom of extreme overstrain, this pain syndrome lasts much longer than usual and is characterized by greater intensity.
Since many newcomers to sports want to achieve noticeable results as quickly as possible, they often show symptoms of overtraining. Someone puts too much effort on hand exercise machines and then cannot wash their hair in the shower normally for a week, while someone focuses too much on their legs and as a result is unable to climb the stairs.
Symptom No. 3: fruitless training
No matter how difficult it is to believe, but excessive exercise can lead to loss of muscle mass and the accumulation of excess fat. Most people think that in sport a simple rule of energy balance works: you need to burn more calories than you consume, which means more exercise. The problem is that no one takes into account the essential role of hormones in this ratio.
Some symptoms of overtraining in men are manifested as a result of increased testosterone production (for women, by the way, this is also bad), along with an increase in cortisol levels. Responding to overload, the body increases its own resistance to insulin and begins to actively accumulate fat. Of course, one should not allow such undesirable effects, because everyone goes in for sports in order to be strong and slim.
Symptom No. 4: anxiety and loss of concentration
Symptoms of overtraining in skiers and other intense exercise enthusiasts, including strength training and HIIT, often manifest as a disorder of the sympathetic nervous system, causing increased excitability, anxiety and inability to concentrate.
When this happens, the recovery of the body goes even harder and takes longer than usual. Do not underestimate a calm rest and a healthy sleep - they provide improved training results.
Symptom No. 5: a feeling of weakness
Feeling weak all day often haunts athletes who prefer endurance exercises. It is also a sign of a disorder of the sympathetic nervous system along with a decrease in testosterone levels and an increase in cortisol. The overwhelming feeling of weakness can even suggest thoughts of acute respiratory viral infections, although the culprit is only muscle overtraining, the symptoms of which can take such forms.
To avoid such side effects from playing sports, experts recommend reducing the duration and at the same time increasing the intensity of training, that is, to prefer short but powerful loads to exhausting long endurance exercises. Even if you are physically able to run 15-20 kilometers every week, this does not mean that you need to load the body like that.
Symptom No. 6: chronic pain in ligaments, bones and limbs
Unpleasant sensations after training, taking the form of a syndrome of delayed muscle soreness (krepatura), are completely normal. However, it also happens that the pain does not go away for a long time. Most often, symptoms of overtraining are manifested in this way, so think about reducing the intensity or duration of classes.
Symptom No. 7: susceptibility to disease
Most often, a person becomes ill with a simultaneous combination of several factors: this is a lack of sleep, monotonous or poor nutrition, reduced physical activity, psychological stress. If it seems to you that you do not have any of these problems, but at the same time you are often sick, most likely, you have become overtrained. The causes, symptoms and treatment of this condition is the topic of more than one dissertation and not one scientific work.
Of course, you can simply not pay attention to a light morning runny nose or episodic coughing attacks, but it is better to listen to your body on time. These small signals may indicate an immune system disorder caused by overly intense exercise.
How to avoid overload
Experts always recommend not to fight the condition, but to prevent overtraining in time: the symptoms and treatment of this ailment are unpleasant, and recovery can take a very long time, during which the muscles lose their former tone. To avoid a short circuit, follow these simple tips:
- get enough sleep;
- make sure that your daily menu includes all the necessary nutrients and minerals;
- recover from psychological stress (for example, replace strength exercises with yoga and meditation practices);
- adjust the training schedule;
- give the body time to return to normal (it is not necessary to completely give up physical activity - try Pilates or complex stretching).