Am I overtraining?
callumwalker1995
Posts: 389 Member
Go to the gym six times a week for about 2.5 hours each session. I've recently started feeling physically shot after every workout like chronic fatigue, aching like mad, irritability (the slightest thing annoys me) and just a negative outlook on life, my body and my health. I've had all tests possible and everything is fine except high creatinine levels which was attributed to my low body fat and have also increases caloric intake to 3800 a day and increasing my sodium in the hope I wasn't getting enough energy or replenishing my electrolytes but nothing has worked. I thought that my depression and anxiety may cause this but I'm currently getting counselling and my physical state has got worse. Do you recommend taking a week off? The only reason why I don't want to atm is because I have nothing to do during the day as I'm a student and it's summer so the gym is the only time I get out
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Replies
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Do a deload instead. Half your training volume and reassess after a week.1
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Is a deload just doing less volume and intensity?0
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Mycophilia wrote: »Do a deload instead. Half your training volume and reassess after a week.
Half?0 -
Yeah pretty much. I prefer keeping intensity the same and just doing half total reps.
This video goes more depth about fatigue management (mostly aimed at powerlifters and weightlifters, but the principles apply to anyone doing strength training):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPZtjXYNkm0 0 -
Why 2.5 hours? Unless you are a top level athlete, I see it as overkill.7
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Is there a change in food? Something your taking? Excess of caffeine?0
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I only ask because someone like me who works 12 hours a day 6 days a week with 5 kids and try to workout 4 days a week with maybe 6 hours sleep a night I found it to be my diet. Made a big difference with my energy levels.1
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Cross train. Mix it up a little. What other sports do you do? And besides strength training, are there other work outs you do at the gym eg rowing, cycling/spinning, circuit training, Pilates etc.?0
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Also try having a couple of rest days per week. Or a couple of low intensity work out days as rest days could be helpful towards recovery too.0
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When was the last time you had more than two days off in a row?1
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TavistockToad wrote: »When was the last time you had more than two days off in a row?
about a month ago for a 4 day holiday, not take a week off in about 3 years because I don't go abroad for my holidays
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Is there a change in food? Something your taking? Excess of caffeine?
I have tried adjusting my diet to see if it was anything ive been eatng/drinking e.g. stopped taking l-carnitine and bcaas because of their side effects but little changed. I even changed from soya milk back to normal milk because of the soy sid effects even though i'm lactose intolerance but have had to swap back because of the pain normal milk gives. I don't take any caffeine. How long do you spend in the gym and what program to do only 4x a week?0 -
Triathlete1502 wrote: »Cross train. Mix it up a little. What other sports do you do? And besides strength training, are there other work outs you do at the gym eg rowing, cycling/spinning, circuit training, Pilates etc.?
I run 2.2k, 3k bike and 1k crosstrain every day as well as my weighttraining0 -
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callumwalker1995 wrote: »Is there a change in food? Something your taking? Excess of caffeine?
I have tried adjusting my diet to see if it was anything ive been eatng/drinking e.g. stopped taking l-carnitine and bcaas because of their side effects but little changed. I even changed from soya milk back to normal milk because of the soy sid effects even though i'm lactose intolerance but have had to swap back because of the pain normal milk gives. I don't take any caffeine. How long do you spend in the gym and what program to do only 4x a week?
I don't ever spend more then a hour. I do more of a bodybuilding routine. Hit all muscle groups in those 4 days. Day one I would do something like a chest exercise then go directly to a smaller muscle the rest 60 seconds repeat.0 -
callumwalker1995 wrote: »
Staying to natural non processed foods consistently has helped. If I choose to eat out of that window I immediately notice fatigue and become tired. I know my body pretty well from testing different foods and the reactions it will have. It's predictably
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callumwalker1995 wrote: »
Staying to natural non processed foods consistently has helped. If I choose to eat out of that window I immediately notice fatigue and become tired. I know my body pretty well from testing different foods and the reactions it will have. It's predictably
I eat natural non processed foods in practically 100% of my diet0 -
callumwalker1995 wrote: »Is there a change in food? Something your taking? Excess of caffeine?
I have tried adjusting my diet to see if it was anything ive been eatng/drinking e.g. stopped taking l-carnitine and bcaas because of their side effects but little changed. I even changed from soya milk back to normal milk because of the soy sid effects even though i'm lactose intolerance but have had to swap back because of the pain normal milk gives. I don't take any caffeine. How long do you spend in the gym and what program to do only 4x a week?
I don't ever spend more then a hour. I do more of a bodybuilding routine. Hit all muscle groups in those 4 days. Day one I would do something like a chest exercise then go directly to a smaller muscle the rest 60 seconds repeat.
do you find restricting yourself to an hour for all your body parts misses out key exercises? like an hour doing chest, arms, legs, back and shoulders0 -
callumwalker1995 wrote: »
Hey Callum, I think it's likely you already know you're training too much and your body is letting you know. Take fatigue seriously, I didn't and was ill for years. I understand the nature of OCD and I think there is some re-wiring for you here. It's one thing to miss a workout and feel frustrated by that, but it's another to feel guilty. Have you got someone to help you make some choices to cut back a bit?0 -
julesloveland wrote: »callumwalker1995 wrote: »
Hey Callum, I think it's likely you already know you're training too much and your body is letting you know. Take fatigue seriously, I didn't and was ill for years. I understand the nature of OCD and I think there is some re-wiring for you here. It's one thing to miss a workout and feel frustrated by that, but it's another to feel guilty. Have you got someone to help you make some choices to cut back a bit?
I have a counsellor but uni is currently a the top of my list of things to address as the work nearly caused me a breakdown last year but I really need to address this too. My body is letting me know but I feel like I just have to go or else I will get fat/lose my muscle. I NEED rest but my head is resisting at all costs, I also know ihave to cut down my time in the gym but that also makes me feel guilty that ill be missing something out of my workout and ill lose my muscle again0 -
callumwalker1995 wrote: »julesloveland wrote: »callumwalker1995 wrote: »
Hey Callum, I think it's likely you already know you're training too much and your body is letting you know. Take fatigue seriously, I didn't and was ill for years. I understand the nature of OCD and I think there is some re-wiring for you here. It's one thing to miss a workout and feel frustrated by that, but it's another to feel guilty. Have you got someone to help you make some choices to cut back a bit?
I have a counsellor but uni is currently a the top of my list of things to address as the work nearly caused me a breakdown last year but I really need to address this too. My body is letting me know but I feel like I just have to go or else I will get fat/lose my muscle. I NEED rest but my head is resisting at all costs, I also know ihave to cut down my time in the gym but that also makes me feel guilty that ill be missing something out of my workout and ill lose my muscle again
If you work out when your body is already overworked you're not gaining anything anyway, in fact you're putting stress on your body that will cause the wrong hormones to be released - which will exacerbate anxiety (cortisol and adrenaline). A short break (less than a week) might do you wonders and definitely won't cause you to gain fat or lose muscle. You'd have to eat at least 3500 calories extra in a week to gain 1lb of fat. It sounds like your diet is already good, so keep on with healthy eating. There is a balance with anxiety related issues as exercise can be helpful. I think it would be good to share with your counsellor about the exercising and the guilt around it, as it is likely it will all be tied in to the same issues that are causing the uni anxieties too. You're doing great. You won't always feel this bad. You do need to look after yourself though!
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julesloveland wrote: »callumwalker1995 wrote: »julesloveland wrote: »callumwalker1995 wrote: »
Hey Callum, I think it's likely you already know you're training too much and your body is letting you know. Take fatigue seriously, I didn't and was ill for years. I understand the nature of OCD and I think there is some re-wiring for you here. It's one thing to miss a workout and feel frustrated by that, but it's another to feel guilty. Have you got someone to help you make some choices to cut back a bit?
I have a counsellor but uni is currently a the top of my list of things to address as the work nearly caused me a breakdown last year but I really need to address this too. My body is letting me know but I feel like I just have to go or else I will get fat/lose my muscle. I NEED rest but my head is resisting at all costs, I also know ihave to cut down my time in the gym but that also makes me feel guilty that ill be missing something out of my workout and ill lose my muscle again
If you work out when your body is already overworked you're not gaining anything anyway, in fact you're putting stress on your body that will cause the wrong hormones to be released - which will exacerbate anxiety (cortisol and adrenaline). A short break (less than a week) might do you wonders and definitely won't cause you to gain fat or lose muscle. You'd have to eat at least 3500 calories extra in a week to gain 1lb of fat. It sounds like your diet is already good, so keep on with healthy eating. There is a balance with anxiety related issues as exercise can be helpful. I think it would be good to share with your counsellor about the exercising and the guilt around it, as it is likely it will all be tied in to the same issues that are causing the uni anxieties too. You're doing great. You won't always feel this bad. You do need to look after yourself though!
Thanks a lot for your post very kind. I'm taking today off and tomorrow and an going away for a few days next week so I will get some rest. Yeah I've read up about cortisol and adrenaline and I think stress and certainly my gym work is contributing. I mean I don't look forward to going to the gym anymore and actually dread going before my workout and it's not supposed to be like that0 -
callumwalker1995 wrote: »callumwalker1995 wrote: »Is there a change in food? Something your taking? Excess of caffeine?
I have tried adjusting my diet to see if it was anything ive been eatng/drinking e.g. stopped taking l-carnitine and bcaas because of their side effects but little changed. I even changed from soya milk back to normal milk because of the soy sid effects even though i'm lactose intolerance but have had to swap back because of the pain normal milk gives. I don't take any caffeine. How long do you spend in the gym and what program to do only 4x a week?
I don't ever spend more then a hour. I do more of a bodybuilding routine. Hit all muscle groups in those 4 days. Day one I would do something like a chest exercise then go directly to a smaller muscle the rest 60 seconds repeat.
do you find restricting yourself to an hour for all your body parts misses out key exercises? like an hour doing chest, arms, legs, back and shoulders
Sorry no. I meant I spend an hour on chest/tris one day back/biceps another not all in one day.0 -
callumwalker1995 wrote: »callumwalker1995 wrote: »Is there a change in food? Something your taking? Excess of caffeine?
I have tried adjusting my diet to see if it was anything ive been eatng/drinking e.g. stopped taking l-carnitine and bcaas because of their side effects but little changed. I even changed from soya milk back to normal milk because of the soy sid effects even though i'm lactose intolerance but have had to swap back because of the pain normal milk gives. I don't take any caffeine. How long do you spend in the gym and what program to do only 4x a week?
I don't ever spend more then a hour. I do more of a bodybuilding routine. Hit all muscle groups in those 4 days. Day one I would do something like a chest exercise then go directly to a smaller muscle the rest 60 seconds repeat.
do you find restricting yourself to an hour for all your body parts misses out key exercises? like an hour doing chest, arms, legs, back and shoulders
Sorry no. I meant I spend an hour on chest/tris one day back/biceps another not all in one day.
Ah right. Doesn't exercising a bodypart only once a week inhibit muscle growth? Optimal training is 2x a week?0 -
Last I saw you were going to log off and work on your mental issues
Overtraining is part of your ocd, like the over analysis and concentration on minutiae
Go compound 3 x a week and get your mental health sorted3 -
callumwalker1995 wrote: »julesloveland wrote: »callumwalker1995 wrote: »julesloveland wrote: »callumwalker1995 wrote: »
Hey Callum, I think it's likely you already know you're training too much and your body is letting you know. Take fatigue seriously, I didn't and was ill for years. I understand the nature of OCD and I think there is some re-wiring for you here. It's one thing to miss a workout and feel frustrated by that, but it's another to feel guilty. Have you got someone to help you make some choices to cut back a bit?
I have a counsellor but uni is currently a the top of my list of things to address as the work nearly caused me a breakdown last year but I really need to address this too. My body is letting me know but I feel like I just have to go or else I will get fat/lose my muscle. I NEED rest but my head is resisting at all costs, I also know ihave to cut down my time in the gym but that also makes me feel guilty that ill be missing something out of my workout and ill lose my muscle again
If you work out when your body is already overworked you're not gaining anything anyway, in fact you're putting stress on your body that will cause the wrong hormones to be released - which will exacerbate anxiety (cortisol and adrenaline). A short break (less than a week) might do you wonders and definitely won't cause you to gain fat or lose muscle. You'd have to eat at least 3500 calories extra in a week to gain 1lb of fat. It sounds like your diet is already good, so keep on with healthy eating. There is a balance with anxiety related issues as exercise can be helpful. I think it would be good to share with your counsellor about the exercising and the guilt around it, as it is likely it will all be tied in to the same issues that are causing the uni anxieties too. You're doing great. You won't always feel this bad. You do need to look after yourself though!
Thanks a lot for your post very kind. I'm taking today off and tomorrow and an going away for a few days next week so I will get some rest. Yeah I've read up about cortisol and adrenaline and I think stress and certainly my gym work is contributing. I mean I don't look forward to going to the gym anymore and actually dread going before my workout and it's not supposed to be like that
Try and find pleasure in the rest and do some things you enjoy! Good luck with it all.
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What are your fitness goals?0
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What are your fitness goals?
to look how I want to look, I hate the way I look, I feel I'm fat as I struggle with fat on my lower abs. I just want to look athletic with muscles and a 6 pack and I don't see why, when I train to within an inch of my life and have a perfect diet, that I don't have this.0 -
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