OVERTRAINING..WHAT IS IT?

The human body will do what it has to in order to survive.

This may mean bringing about sickness to cause a disruption in daily routine.

Some signs of overtraining that we may not be paying enough attention to are things like, slight depression, colds, sinus issues, allergies, desire to eat junk which leads to more of the above.

I’d like to share my own experience from this past weekend. 

The majority of my time is spent training and leading others.  I try to get some of my own workouts in but I do not currently have myself on a regular regimen.  Therefore, in my world, I am out of shape in several ways. 

We went to a fitness expo where we registered for two fitness classes that were pretty intense.  The weekend before we ran a 5k, which felt tough enough for me. 

We’re looking at approximately three hours of intense workouts in seven days.  I’d say a level 9 on the exhaustion scale for me with some periods touching base with level 10. 

The week after the race on Sunday I did about three low intensity fitness classes.  I kept my exertion level at a low level of 3-4.  Then the following Friday when we did the two fitness classes and I know those were both a level 9 for me touching level 10 at times.

I ate plenty all week long.  Well over 2000 calories a day.  On Friday, the day of the two fitness classes I packed plenty of food to eat every couple hours if not every hour.  That day I had nearly 3000 calories.

It took me all day Saturday and all day Sunday to recover from Friday.  I felt it.  I felt highly depressed, hungry yet not hungry.  I forced myself to eat when I didn’t want to.  I had 2000-3000 calories each day after the classes.  I did all the right things but I had pushed myself so hard that my recovery was more important than anything else.  I know I would’ve gotten sick if I hadn’t.

Because I’ve done all the right things I feel this week will be a good one for me.  Weight is down and I feel trim and strong.  I believe if I’d have kept my intensity in the classes to a level 8-9 I wouldn’t have felt depressed and sad and highly fatigued on Saturday.

OVERTRAINING is most commonly working out more than an hour a day without fueling your body with food while training and it’s also working out too intensely for too long. 

You have to consider how important food and rest are.  The body really only grows stronger after the REST period.  That means sleep and sometimes that sleep has to come in chunks throughout the day.  Nap if you must! But get sleep and fuel regularly throughout the hours after your intense workouts.

The Exertion scale is as follows:
1-     No activitiy (reading a book in bed)   
2-3 Light activity (breathing is fairly normal)
4-6  Moderate activity (can still carry a conversation but takes a breath here and there)
7-8  Hard activity
       (can only get one/two sentences out before having to breathe instead of talk)
9-    Very hard activity (can only get one word out)
10-  Very Very hard activity
       (can’t speak at all and will mostly likely have to stop or need help )