How to avoid over training

What is over training? Does it exist?

Can you train too much? If you want to continue to build muscle, burn fat and sculpt the body you desire with the fitness level to match, then please read on.

Overtraining put quite simply is when you have pushed your body too hard, too often without giving it adequate rest to repair and recover. This doesn’t just go for your muscles but also your CNS (Central Nervous System) and your overall mental wellbeing.

Overtraining is relatively easy to spot, we just need to be aware of the signs and actually doing something about it. If you’re like me, I’m sure you feel guilty for taking time off from training, but I have recently been reminded of how important rest and time off actually is. I am back into my first week of training after taking 2 weeks off, I was suffering from overtraining. I got run down, tired, unmotivated, felt weak and to top it off, got a shocking virus- obviously due to the fact I had battered my body and not let it recover. Did I want to take 2 weeks off? Not really, but I knew I had too. There was no chance of me training while I had the virus which lasted 4 days, but on either side of that, I was still tired and rundown. I knew rest and some time away from training was the answer.

So, unlike previous times when I took a few days off, I was partially forced (illness) into taking longer, and I’m glad I did.

So how do you know if you’ve overtrained?? What are the signs?

A plateau in performance. Not seeing progress as you normally have in the past.
A decrease in overall performance.
An Elevated Resting Heart Rate.
An Elevated Training HR.
Feeling lethargic and heavy in your body.
Ongoing muscle soreness that doesn’t seem to go away.
Lack of motivation to train and start your workouts.
Tiredness. Finding yourself getting tired earlier than usual.
Changes in appetite. Either not as hungry as usual or craving food constantly.
Weight loss (when not trying).

Overtraining is, as I have found out, quite simple to cure. Some time away from training and other factors stressing your body will make a huge difference. How much time is up to you listening to your body but I recommend at least a week, potentially 2 (as I did). Despite what you might believe you won’t lose muscle mass and fitness in 2 weeks- science has proven that but I’ll save that for another time. You may come back feeling slightly “weaker” in your first few sessions, I did, while some will come back feeling stronger. Don’t panic if you feel what I felt, the strength comes back after a few sessions, I have found it to be your body getting used to firing up again, not as mentioned above- from muscle loss.

So to sum it all up, if you’ve found yourself express a combination of the above, take some time off. Rest, repair, both mentally and physically and come back firing to start making some gains again!

PS. If you want to take your health, fitness, and body to the next level- check out Bodyweight Built, my coaching platform, where I will give you the blueprint to success without needing a gym or fancy equipment to completely transform your body!