Exercise is healthy. There’s no doubt about it. But as fitness gains momentum with trendy workouts and inspirational messages, is it possible that we’re overdoing it? Could less be more? Should you exercise less?
In most big cities across the country, there’s certainly no dearth of high intensity classes and trendy fitness studios challenging us with heavier weights and faster sprints.
I love exercise and I love these classes – but not everyday.
With all those endorphins you get from exercise, it’s easy to overtrain to addiction. I know because I once suffered from exercise addiction hitting the gym as much as twice per day most days.
While I don’t discourage exercise, I want to shine a light on the reality that it’s possible to exercise too much and too hard.
When clients who “eat well and exercise regularly” complain they’re unable to lose weight, one of the first things I consider is the possibility of overtraining.
I don’t mean to say that everyone absolutely needs to tone it down or cut back, but if you’re putting in high intensity work everyday or even most days, you may be doing your body more harm than good. Even more so, says Chris Kresser an expert in functional and integrative medicine, if you’re someone who has an existing autoimmune disease, problems with your gut or adrenal fatigue, less is more.
You might be familiar with the research that shorter, more intense workouts are more beneficial than hours-long steady state cardio. That is, if you’re smart about it and don’t overdo it according to this recent controversial study that slow jogging is more beneficial than fast running.
Beyond that, intense overtraining activates the release of cortisol, a stress hormone. I referred to this in my post, Want to Lose Weight? Stop Doing This ONE Thing, regarding obsessing about losing weight and it works the same with physical stress as it does with mental stress.
The body perceives intense exercise as stress, cortisol is released at sustained levels consistently over time and that results in any of a long list of issues from depression to weight gain and digestive problems.
Overtraining also impacts your immune system.
Chris Kresser calls this immune system “hyperactivity”, cellular damage during overtraining which can cause autoimmune disorders.
Finally, there’s the possibility of something more dangerous like rhabdomyolysis, a serious condition that meeds immediate medical attention. Exercise breaks down muscle tissue. In some cases that muscle protein is released into the bloodstream and damages the kidneys. My dad, an emergency medical physician, says he’s seen an increase in “rhabdo” in the ER in recent years.
If you experience muscle pain and swelling or brownish red urine, this could be a sign of something more serious and you should see a doctor immediately.
Some common signs you’re generally overtraining, include:
- fatigue or a general feeling of exhaustion
- frequent colds
- muscle loss or weight gain
The best remedy for overtraining is rest.
Listen to your body before your mind and reduce the frequency of intense training.
Not every workout has to be all out. Take a dance class, practice yoga, go on a walk.
Find ways to make movement feel luxurious and enjoyable too.
Do you tend to overtrain? What’s your experience with intense exercise?
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