While I hope this doesn’t sound too wishful, the end of winter is near. With a weekend of double digit temperatures and a forecast full of warm weather I am ready to say goodbye to old-man winter and get on with Spring! With sunny days top of mind there is a renewed interest to meet those fitness goals and and lose those last few inches.
When building your workout schedule don’t forget to plan for some down time too.
Quite frequently I will have a new client sign on for training sessions, and before I know it they are booking into every one of my classes or training sessions with me every day. It is great to be excited about a new goal and eager to see results and achieve those goals. At the same time, it is important to remember that saying: slow and steady wins the race.
Overtraining happens. It is important to listen to your body and know the signs of overtraining. While there are a number of signs to watch for, here are some of the most common:
Decreased performance. As you train, you should be progressing steadily over time: getting stronger or faster. If you find you are getting weaker, slower or have lowered endurance levels you may be overtraining.
Increased effort required. As overtraining takes a toll on the body, workouts that were at one time achievable can be more difficult or impossible.
Excessive fatigue. If you don’t give your body a chance to fully recover from a previous workout you may continue to feel more and more fatigued. It is common for muscles to feel tired after a workout. This fatigue should not last multiple days.
Ongoing muscle aches or joint pain. Muscle soreness from a workout is common and should diminish after a couple of days. Overused muscles and joints can cause constant aches that last for days after a workout.
Irritability or lack of concentration. Too much exercise and too little rest can cause mood swings and difficulty concentrating.
Frequent illnesses and respiratory infections. A nagging cold or consistent headaches might be a sign of overtraining. Too much exercise can make your body more susceptible to illness and infections.
Restless sleep or insomnia. Sleep is required to repair the body. An overtrained body, find rest difficult making it more difficult to recover between workouts.
Loss of appetite. If you have increased your daily physical activity, your appetite should increase as well. A decrease in appetite is a good indicator that something isn’t right.
All of these signs of overtraining should not go unnoticed and should not be an excuse to stop training altogether. Try cutting back on the intensity, frequency or duration of your workout. Consider changes to your plan: swap a weightlifting session for yoga or a high impact class for a long walk and give your body the rest and time for recovery that it needs.
