Overtraining
Overtraining occurs when a person exceeds their body's ability to recover from strenuous exercise.[1] Overtraining can be described as a point where a person may have a decrease in performance and plateauing as a result of failure to consistently perform at a certain level or training load; a load which exceeds their recovery capacity.[2] People who are overtrained cease making progress, and can even begin to lose strength and fitness. Overtraining is also known as chronic fatigue, burnout and overstress in athletes.[3][4] It is suggested that there are different variations of overtraining, firstly monotonous program over training suggest that repetition of the same movement such as certain weight lifting and baseball batting can cause performance plateau due to an adaption of the central nervous system which results from a lack of stimulation.[2] A second example of overtraining is described as chronic overwork type training where the subject may be training with too high intensity or high volume and not allowing sufficient recovery time for the body.[2] Up to 10% of elite endurance athletes and 10% of American college swimmers are affected by overtraining syndrome (unexplained underperformance for approximately 2 weeks even after having adequate resting time).[5]
Signs and symptoms
Listed below are some of the common effects and cited signs of overtraining.[6][7][8][9]
Overtraining may be accompanied by one or more concomitant symptoms:[6][7]
- Persistent muscle soreness[10]
- Persistent
- Elevated resting heart rate, a persistently high heart rate after adequate rest such as in the morning after sleep, can be an indicator of overtraining.[5]
- Reduced heart rate variability
- Increased susceptibility to infections
- Increased incidence of injuries
- Irritability
- Depression
- Mental breakdown
It is important to note the difference between overtraining and over-reaching; over-reaching is when an athlete is undergoing hard training but with adequate recovery, overtraining however, is when an athlete is undergoing hard training without the adequate recovery. With over-reaching, the consequential drop in performance can be resolved in a few days or weeks.[14]
Performance
- Early onset of fatigue
- Decreased aerobic capacity (VO2 max)
- Poor physical performance
- Inability to complete workouts
- Delayed recovery
Overtraining can affect the athlete's athletic ability and other areas of life, such as performance in studies or the work force. An overtrained athlete who is suffering from physical and or psychological symptoms could also have trouble socialising with friends and family, studying for an exam or preparing for work.[14]
Cause
Like pharmacological drugs, physical exercise may be chemically
Mechanism
A number of possible mechanisms for overtraining have been proposed. One stipulates that
Treatment
The most effective way to treat the effects of overtraining is to allow the body enough time to recover:
- Taking a break from training to allow time for recovery.[23]
- Reducing volume and/or intensity of training.[24]
- Suitable periodization of training.[25]
- Splitting the training program so that different sets of muscles are worked on different days.[23]
- Increase sleep time.
- Deep-tissue or sports massage of the affected muscles.[26]
- Self-massage or rub down of the affected muscles.[26]
- Short sprints with long resting time once the athlete is able to continue with light training.[5]
Diet
Adapting nutritional intake can help to prevent and treat overtraining. Athletes in different fields will emphasize different proportional nutrition factors on the diet mainly including proteins, carbohydrates and fats. The diet includes a calorie intake that at least matches expenditure,
Rhabdomyolysis
Exertional rhabdomyolysis is an extreme and potentially deadly form of overtraining that leads to a breakdown of skeletal muscle which makes its way into the blood. Many molecules such as potassium, creatine kinase, phosphate, and myoglobin are released into circulation. Myoglobin is the protein that causes the lethal reaction in the body. Early detection of the syndrome is essential in full recovery. A serious late complication of rhabdomyolysis which occurs in 15% of the population is acute kidney injury, and in some cases it can lead to death.[28]
Clinical presentation[28]
- Muscle pain
- Tenderness
- Swelling
- Weakness
- Bruising
- Tea colored urine
- Fever
- Malaise
- Nausea
- Emesis
- Confusion
- Agitation
- Delirium
- Anuria
CrossFit and rhabdomyolysis
As
Prevention
Passive recovery, instead of active recovery, is a form of rest that is recommended to be performed by athletes in between rigorous, intermittent exercise. With active recovery, time to exhaustion is much shorter because the muscles are deoxygenated at a much quicker rate than with passive recovery. Thus, if avoiding overtraining means preventing exhaustion, passive recovery or "static rest" is safest. If active recovery is performed during intense exercise, an athlete may find themselves in a state of being overtrained.[30] The gradual variation of intensity and volume of training is also an effective way to prevent overtraining.
References
- ^ Walker, Brad (17 March 2002). "Overtraining - Learn how to identify Overtraining Syndrome". stretchcoach.com. Retrieved 2016-05-17.
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- ^ a b "Top 10 Signs You're Overtraining". The American Council on Exercise. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- ^ "Overtraining with Resistance Exercise" (PDF). American College of Sports Medicine. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- ^ "Overtraining and Osteoporosis". WebMD, LLC. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- S2CID 37150248. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
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- PMID 17545398. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
- PMID 9190120. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
- ^ a b Kreider, R. B.; Fry, A. C.; O'Toole, M. L., eds. (1998). Overtraining in sport. Human Kinetics.
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- PMID 18500962.)
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - S2CID 22001535.
- ^ a b c d "Overtraining". Hospital for Special Surgery. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- S2CID 25079796.
- ^ "Overtraining Syndrome". Rice University. Archived from the original on 21 August 2009. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- ^ PMID 10786866.
- ^ a b "Overtraining Recovery Tips". Health Guidance. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- ^ PMID 11898964.
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- PMID 14767255.