Have you ever heard of overtraining? Do you know the risks?

This is a phenomenon that concerns both top athletes and weekend sportsmen. It occurs when the duration, repetition and intensity of training is too high and the overworked muscles can no longer reproduce the effort. It intervenes especially when the recovery phases are not sufficient to allow our body to reconstitute its energy reserves.

The causes

Several causes can be combined.

• Excessive training load or increasing the type of training (load and intensity) too quickly
• Little diversity in training content
• Insufficient recovery, which prevents muscles and joints from refueling and regenerating
• nutritional errors: a poor diet that does not allow you to properly replenish your glycogen stores
• Too much stress (from everyday life), which does not allow the body to recover properly.

Symptoms.

Alongside the drop in performance and greater fatigue, the symptoms of overtraining vary according to each athlete and according to the discipline practised.

The main symptoms are:

• extreme tiredness
• A decline in performance
• Muscle or joint pain and recurrent injuries
• Sleep disorders (difficulty falling asleep, nocturnal awakenings, hypersomnia)
• Appetite disorders (deficiencies, dehydration, lack of energy intake)
• A change in mood: irritability, aggressiveness
• A lack of motivation during the sessions: loss of concentration, weariness.

How to avoid it?

To prevent overtraining, the athlete must above all listen to his body and be attentive to the warning signs set out above. Be also aware that over time, your abilities will evolve, in one direction or the other.

Get accompanied by a trainer and a sports doctor, to:

• know your abilities and set personalized objectives at a given time or program
• control training loads taking into account training volumes and intensities
• optimize your recovery: by creating a suitable routine, such as performing a self-massage after exercise with Elemat universal oil
• have excellent hydration and a balanced diet.

To avoid overtraining, always listen to your body. He talks to you. But you have to know how to listen to it properly. Your brain is lazy and will send you a message of discouragement. It's normal ! But pay more attention to your joints and muscles, they are the ones who will give you the right signals.