Are you over training?
There are a few vital clues that our bodies give out when they have had enough and require some rest -
or at least time off exercise all together (in the conventional sense). Movement and activity is always
good but sometimes we need to take it easy with things like weight lifting, running, and other
intense exercise. Keep an eye out for when:
This happens for a variety of reasons - our nervous system gets tired, and our muscle glycogen gets
depleted leading us to feeling grumpy, irritable, tired, lethargic and like we don’t want to move - a
sort of tired but wired feeling. Basically all the things that we do not want to feel
especially when trying to look and feel healthy - the trouble is our nervous system needs a lot of
time to repair, only good sleep, relaxation and food can help.
Muscle glycogen is another key factor - It is rapidly depleted with exercise to give
you an idea just a few sets of sprints going all out will deplete a large proportion of your bodies stored
muscle glycogen. This will take a lot of food to fill back up, and in most cases it is more than we can
keep up with eating if exercising with intensity on a regular basis.
So in a nutshell the reason we need to take time off exercise is to replenish and nourish the nervous
system and muscle glycogen.
There are various techniques I like to use to do this, most are simple and easy to implement
into life.
Pretty simple stuff but having awareness of your body is invaluable. Being aware of when we have pushed too
far or when we need some time off is something not everyone has and is something that in reality it comes with
experience. So watch out for the signs and listen to how your body feels when it comes to training. If you are
suffering from insomnia or fatigue there is a very good chance it is down to your nervous system being overtaxed
or chronically low muscle glycogen.