Beyond-Brawn-2nd-Edition

14. How to Avoid the
Plague of Overtraining
14.1 e inability of most trainees to recognize the symptoms of overtraining is
at the root of their training problems. But recognizing the symptoms is only
the start. You need to know how to respond to the early symptoms—immediately—if
you are to escape the frustration and misery that accompanies
chronic overtraining. is is a very serious issue.
14.2 Serious hard-gaining trainees have the grit and character to soldier on
even when the going gets tough. is is usually a desirable trait, but when
it comes to dealing with the warning signs of overtraining, this grit can be
destructive. Watch out for your emotions getting the better of your reason.
You must train within your body’s ability to recuperate. Never mind what
someone else can recuperate from. Someone else is not you.
14.3 Overtraining arises when the body is exposed to more stress than it can deal
with. It may be that you are training too frequently for the exercise load you
are under, or that you are training too much each workout for the frequency
you are using. But overtraining is usually much more complex than that.
14.4 Overtraining does not occur overnight unless you greatly increase your
training load and/or have some drastic reduction in the quality of your rest,
sleep and nutrition, and/or have some calamity in your personal/family
life that wipes you out. Overtraining is usually an accumulative process of
weeks and months of demanding too much from your body, and ignoring
the warning signs of impending chronic overtraining.
14.5 When on the edge of overtraining you may still creep forward in the gym;
but things will fall apart as you reach the exhaustion point of your recovery
abilities. en, unless you back off in a big way, your body will crumble.
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