In the fitness world, more isn’t always better. Excess exercise can cause burnout or even injuries, ultimately sabotaging your long-term goals.
“Fitness and health are forever,” says Dr. Michael Giardina, PT, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT, clinic manager at Memorial Hermann Sports Medicine & Rehabilitation at Memorial Hermann Convenient Care Center in Spring. “Find something that you enjoy, that keeps you moving and is pain-free.”
Dr. Giardina pinpoints 10 common overtraining mistakes and how to avoid them.
Mistake #1: You don’t listen to your body.
“Normal soreness goes away in 48 to 72 hours,” he says. “But if you’re sore and aching for a week, that’s a sign.” Also be warned if pain interferes with your sleep and energy levels.
Each time you exercise, assess your body during your warmup and during your post-workout stretching. “If something doesn’t feel right, avoid pushing yourself over the limit and risking injury,” Dr. Giardina says. “Often, lasting soreness, joint aches and injury are signs that no recovery has been built into your fitness routine.”
If you sense that you’re pushing yourself too hard, your muscles are too tight or you’re otherwise starting to feel detrimental effects, take a day devoted to stretching, yoga or light exercise, he says.
Mistake #2: You don’t know what went wrong because you didn’t track your regimen.
Log your workout lengths, intensity and progress in a journal. Also record your hydration, nutrition and sleep hours, noting the quality of your slumber.
“You need to sleep adequately because that’s where a large amount of your recovery occurs,” Dr. Giardina says.
Also, by having the details in writing, “you don’t have to guess what went wrong if you’re overly sore,” he says. “You can look back and use data to see where you overdid it.”
Mistake #3: You deprive yourself outside the gym.
Muscle fibers need nutrients to grow, so you’ve got to feed yourself enough calories to support muscle growth. “The healthier you are, the better your performance will be,” Dr. Giardina says.
Be sure to have a macro-nutrient rich meal at least an hour before exercising. And drink water – not only during your workout but also before it and throughout the day, he says.
To calculate how much water you should drink on a daily basis, divide your body weight by two and drink one ounce of water per pound. For example, if you weigh 180 pounds, divide your weight in half, which is 90 pounds, indicating that you should drink 90 ounces of water a day.
Also, you should observe the color of your urine. It should be clear, not golden. “The majority of people are drinking too little,” he says.
Mistake #4: Your impatience to improve interferes with your ability to do so.
You may start seeing slower times for running or fewer pounds lifted for weightlifting, which may be signs that you’re overtraining, Dr. Giardina says.
Vital to strength and speed is recovery, he says. Rather than push yourself into an injury, dial it back with rest days between your workouts. “When we lift weights or do high intensity interval training (HIIT) or other intense workouts, we cause microtears of the muscles we use,” Dr. Giardina says. “We need recovery time sufficient to rebuild and grow those muscles.”
One to two days weekly should be active rest days, he says, or two to three days if you’re an intense exerciser doing HIIT or CrossFit.
Also try alternating. If you hit the weights daily, you might zone in on upper body on one day and switch to lower body the next day. You also could rotate mobility workouts with strength-based ones.
Mistake #5: You don’t let up.
When aiming to stick with your goals, it can feel counterproductive to take a recovery day. Skipping a day of intense exercising doesn’t mean disengaging from life.
Fill your recovery days with long trail walks, bike rides with your kids, yoga classes or having a “light” pickleball game. If you can’t help being fiercely competitive, find something solo to do.
Just move. “Increased blood flow can reduce the feeling of soreness, so you want to keep moving,” Dr. Giardina says. “Just don’t make it something that breaks down the same muscles as the day before.”
Competitive athletes can work other muscles, which is why runners often mix in swimming or biking. “You’re still working toward the same goals and are trying to improve your cardiovascular output, but you’re not overusing your joints,” he says.
Mistake #6: You’re an all-or-nothing exerciser.
It’s hard not to demand too much of yourself. But make that a constructive goal.
Focus on improving your sleep hygiene, with less screen time and more snoozing. And again, on recovery days, go easier on the muscles you’ve taxed. “Accept the days when you can’t do extra,” Dr. Giardina says.
Mistake #7: You compete with others, rather than yourself.
It’s tempting to compare yourself to your workout buddy or others at your gym. But overreaching beyond your own body’s capacity could lead to overtraining and endanger your progress.
Record your workout each day and go for your personal best, not someone else’s. Exercise can be personal and meditative if you focus on your own breathing and effort rather than your neighbor’s efforts.
Mistake #8: You ignore your mental state.
When your workout becomes a grind, it may be due to poor sleep, which can evolve into depression, lack of motivation and lower performance. That becomes a vicious cycle unless you hop off the grind, he says.
“A big part of the puzzle is the mental aspect,” Dr. Giardina says. “When you’re happier, you perform better. Exercise tends to lift your mood, while inactivity can lower it. If your mood is low and your sleep is inadequate, you’ll see your weights and times go down. It’s a compounding effect.”
Take an emotional break along with your physical one. Also add variety into your exercise regimen. “You need to find something you enjoy doing,” he says. “Once you lose interest, it’s a downward spiral.”
Having a menu of various forms of training options helps.
And if you’re injured and cannot work out at your fullest, find a way to be outside if the weather is nice. Your physical therapist will be able to suggest ways you can move without aggravating an injury.
Mistake #9: You don’t seek help when you should.
If you are in pain and notice your training numbers, sleep and alertness are down, you should alert your health care provider.
Your doctor can order simple but revealing tests such as a urinalysis, which may indicate you’re not eating enough. Bloodwork, blood pressure tests and even a bone density test may reveal underlying health issues, such as osteoporosis, diabetes or hypertension.
Physical therapists also can help relieve muscular and joint pain.
Mistake #10: After an overtraining injury, you rush to resume at the level you had before being injured.
Progress sometimes means slowing down. Don’t jump back at your highest exercise level and intensity before your body can handle the stress.
“That doesn’t mean do nothing,” Dr. Giardina says. Your physical therapist can guide you. A common formula is to start at 10% of your previous highest weights, speed, or miles and then conduct an honest self-assessment, and begin increasing intensity as needed.
And remember to resume your recovery days, as well as taking time to stretch tight muscles. “If you don’t and you overtrain again, you’ll be back on the bench,” Dr. Giardina says. “The biggest thing is to return to training gradually.”
