What is Overtraining?

So what type of workout is too much? Well, that is a loaded question. You see your body is capable of handling a lot, however if you are serious about your fitness and strength program then you have to have some knowledge as to what overtraining entails. More than likely you are not training to a level that you are overtraining your body in most cases. Now the reason I say this is because most people have a hard enough time just getting a workout in a couple days out of the week. If you feel that you are the exception then this article is for you.

There are many symptoms to overtraining. First of all, if you have an intense workout after a string of intense workouts and feel like your workout was more counter-productive than productive then you could be overtraining. If you are very sore very often you could be overtraining. Another symptom could include you having difficulty in sleeping or a loss of appetite. These basically just involve you having to use common sense and good judgement. Learn how to listen to your body and remember to get plenty of rest. You start getting results the moment you complete your workout. The recovery period is where your body’s muscular system is restoring itself and you start to develop more lean muscle mass during this period. Just be careful about some of these crazy challenges that are out there on the internet these days. For instance there are crazy kettlebell challenges that are floating around on the internet. There are things like the 10,000 swing challenge in 30 days. This is ridiculous because more than likely there is no way you are allowing enough recovery for this if you are cramming that many reps in to that short amount of time. Once again, just use good judgement and common sense to do what you need to do to get the most out of your workouts.

You just need to have a good grasp on overtraining and recovery. Just have an idea of what to look for in overtraining symptoms and try to avoid it. Once again, don’t allow this to deter you from your intensity though. Your body can handle a lot just be aware of what a “lot” is. Remember to train hard, but always train smart my friend.