How much exercising is sustainable?

Hi,

Ok, let's say I'd follow this schedule (hypothetically)

Sunday: resting
Monday: Swimming + Running
Tuesday: Cycling + Strength training
Wednesday: Swimming + Running
Thursday: Swimming + Strength training
Friday: Swimming + Running
Saturday: Running

Running = Light-intensive, 5-10 km
Swimming = Light-moderate, 30-45 minutes
Cycling = Intensive, 60 minute indoor cycling (in winter)
Strength training = training all muscles

Ok to be clear, I do something similar, but I exercise 7-8 times. This schedule is 11 times, a lot more.

The idea behind this is that I just love exercising and I wonder what is too much. I am especially concerned with the body wearing quicker and injuries (which I never had, in part because I am very careful).

So, is this hypothetical scenario too much?

I am not sure how exactly are you timing your workouts, but I suggest to do strength training first and then your cardio the bigger the time gap between those the better. Also, I think you do to much cardio, unless you're preparing for a marathon or something but 3 x a week for 30min is plenty if you also do proper lifting.

Your routine really depends on your goals. Its either bodybuilding, endurance, maintenance, etc. But right now it looks like you're going for endurance. If so, I would pop another rest day in the middle of the week.

Thanks for your suggestions, really helpful!!

1) I am not really timing them, only occasionally; for running/cycling I just pay attention to the distance.

2) I love exercising. My main motivations for doing exercise are not to lose weight or to become fit (which are both nice and I like it that this is happening), but for the mental benefits; getting rid of stress, boosting focus, feeling good, building willpower.
Running, biking and swimming have proven themselves to be effective for that goal. Strength training has not yet, but I will start experimenting with strength training tomorrow (my first time in 5+ years). I expect that I can learn to appreciate it (I don't allow myself to put something in my exercise routine unless I like it (so I have to first learn to like things)).

So, yeah, I like cardio a bit too much! I do interval training/sprints though. I agree with you that my hypothetical schedule is too much cardio (and my current schedule is too), but I wonder is it bad for me? Is it ok if I enjoy this? Again I try to maximise mental benefits, not physical. Again, I'll look for ways to make strength training useful for my goals because you are very right on this.

3) A break day is a good suggestion! Is it ok to do a light swim (30 m of slow/relaxed swimming) on such a day?

Thanks again man!

alright, I see. Cardio deffo helps to get rid of stress and stiffness! if you feel like 6 times of cardio per week are ok for you then that's fine. But considering that you run a lot that my have impact on your ankles. Make sure you invest in your running shoes, which would minimize the impact while running.

But definitely try weight training. When I started my gym journey, had no idea on how to exercise. Did isolated exercise with low weights, hight number of reps and cardio almost everyday. (this is nonsense).

Once I got into routine of proper heavy weight lifting(reduced cardio to 2xtimes a week), I see the actual improvement on my fitness. Not only my physique is getting so much better, but my mood as well. Your brain gets more oxygen and your heart gets stronger. For me it's an ultimate stress reducer.(Especially squats) If you going to start it for the first time. Then make sure you do a proper form. Help from experience lifter would be very good. If unavailable try going to bodybuilding.com and see how they do it there. Start with small weights, do proper warm up, then do 3-4 sets of heavy weight. By heavy I mean, you wouldnt be able to do more than 6reps, if you can - increase weight. Best exercises for beginner are compounds : squats,deadlifts, bench press, military press. That's basically all you need. so if you can do 4 x weight training a week and incorporate 2-3 times of cardio (20-30mins) then that's great.

I am sure you'll develop that love for lifting as soon as you hit it hard.

Yeah, if you feel like doing some light cardio, then go for it.

It's completely personal. If you can sleep and eat enough to keep that up, then I guess it's sustainable.

http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/exercise-addiction-ben-carter-tells-how-an-obsession-with-exercise-threatened-his-health/story-fneuzlbd-1226775942243

Well, that's sick. 5 hours a day for a week... 33kg lost in 18months....

what's sustainable is going to vary considerably from individual to individual. If you're doing all that because you enjoy it, then it's very likely to be sustainable.

You need to be sure that you're getting adequate food to fuel that amount of exercise and adequate rest. For cardio you don't need that much rest, just enough that you don't feel tired all the time. For weight training and other resistance training you should give each body part 48 hrs rest between workouts, so that would be a full body workout 3x a week or split routines where you train more times in a week but don't train the same body part two days in a row. Some people due to being older or maybe other issues may need more recovery time than this.

From what I've researched on this in the past (in academic journals etc) insufficient food seems to play a bigger role in cases of overtraining than the amount of exercise. The healthy human body seems to be able to do a remarkable amount of exercise, provided it's properly fed. You get people who do manual labour 40+ hours a week then go to the gym or play sport at the weekends. You get professional athletes who train daily, and these people manage fine but require huge quantities of food. There is such a thing as too much exercise, but most people who think they have a problem with over-exercising actually have a problem with undereating. If you're eating for fat loss then follow the same rules as for everyone else, i.e. 30% deficit if you have a huge amount of fat to lose, 20% for a moderate amount of fat, and 10% if you're within the healthy body fat percentage range but want to get lower within that range. If you experience symptoms of overtraining, eat more food and see if that fixes it.