Ever returned home after a heavy workout and your body still refuses to hibernate to sleep? Or feel insatiable thirst even after gulping down liters of water? Well, welcome to therapy! You’ve overworked your body to a point where you’re tearing up tissues at a rate faster than your body can rebuild them. There are typical signs when you can know that you’re putting way too much load on your body but sometimes that might go unnoticed or probably even ignored due to unrealistic goals you’ve set for yourself.
However, it is extremely important for you to respond to the messages your body sends you before it disrupts your day to day activity and brings you to a halt. It may take up to two to three weeks to get your body back to functioning properly but if you want to take a note of these things sooner you can get an idea by looking for the signs mentioned below.
Signs that you have overworked your body:
1. Change in Resting Heart Rate
This is possibly the first signs that you should check for. Some individuals have found that they witnessed a magnitudinal change in their heart rates even while resting. This is one of the clearest signs that you have overworked your body in the gym.
The normal heart rate for an adult could vary between 60 to 100 beats per minute, the lower determining a better fitness level. However, if you witness your heart rate to be considerably high or low beyond these figures then you should definitely consult a doctor. Although you might have a resting heart rate of about 40 beats per minute if you are extremely fit or an athlete.
Checking your heart rate can be pretty easy and could even if done by yourself.
Simply lie down on a bed and keep your wrist facing upwards. Now place two fingers on your wrist closer to the thumb area and try to feel the beat. Take a count of the number of beats in thirty seconds and multiply it by two to get an approximate note of your heart rate. Some individuals may find trouble recording the heart beats on the wrist and can alternatively place the two fingers on the neck near the windpipe area.
2. Extremely Sore Muscles
If you are a gym enthusiast then sore muscles are pretty much part of the routine. However, if muscles refuse to go back to normal then you have got yourself into a problem. It is completely okay for some muscles to feel sore up to 48 hours after an intense workout but if you are already past three days and still witness that to be a problem then it is a good idea to take a break and let your muscles relax a bit. This means that you are tearing down tissues at a rate faster than your body can rebuild them. Experts also believe that sometimes intense workouts lasting more than 75 minutes in the gym could vastly contribute to sore muscles and it is recommended that you change your workout routine.
Another visible sign that you’re overworking your muscles is decreased performance. If you are witnessing decreased output in workouts that employ exhausted muscles then believe us that your body is begging you to go easy on it. So if you see yourself barely doing 8-10 repetitions of an exercise as opposed to 12-15 earlier, we say you put your body in relaxing mode for a few days.
This is just the tip of the iceberg though. Exercising when your body is exhausted can also stop small injuries from healing themselves. Ever notice you get injured at the same places repeatedly? Well, that is exactly what we are talking about. Ensure you lower the intensity of your workout regime to give your body ample time to heal itself. You could also consider ditching the dumbbells and weights in favour of playing a sport.
3. Having Trouble Sleeping
If you have trouble sleeping even after shedding a gallon of sweat at the gym then there are chances that it might be another cry for help. It is believed to be a combination of hormonal and neurological disorders. Experts emphasize that is extremely important for your body to get proper sleep in order for your muscles to grow. They go on to say that some individuals need to have up to nine hours of sleep for their body to function properly. Alternatively, if you are too burdened with work ensure that you at least get sleep for three to four hours around 10:00 PM as this is the time when your body is rebuilding during rest.
This could also be due to nutritional deficiencies in your body and it is recommended you eat a lot of clean foods and drink lots of water. If that too fails to rescue you from having sleepless nights try the ZMA which you can get over at Black Belt Proteins. It has been found to make significant difference and the reviews lead us to believe you will be able to sleep better.
4. Losing Grip Strength
Losing your grip strength is one of the most reliable ways to find out if you’re overworking your body. When your body is exhausted the force production abilities of the body suffer significantly so much so that you will be able to find the difference naturally. However, there are still times when you aren’t sure. We would suggest getting a dynamometer to calculate your grip strength. This device can accurately record your grip strength and help to indicate you whether you’ve been going too hard on your body for that perfect body.
This simple test can be done daily and is one of the most reliable methods to find out the signs of overtraining.
5. Depression, Anxiety, and Loss of Focus
While you could easily take a break to give your body some much-needed rest and come back to training with a fresh peace of mind, some psychological problems root in deeper in our bodies. Overtraining leading to fatigue could really alter our behavior around other people thus leaving a permanent mark on our personalities.
If you happen to be shedding blood and sweat in the gym more than 7 hours a week and find yourself getting irritated over things that would normally get past you without you noticing then we have a problem.
It has been found that our sympathetic nervous system goes haywire and causes restlessness and inability to focus. This further adds fuel to the problem if you were already having trouble sleeping. There will also be clear warning signs of overworking your body when you find yourself losing focus in a room full of people in an important meeting.
In severe cases, it might be depression. Depression manifests differently in different people and there is no particular definition to tell that apart. However, do note that is something more than just feeling down all the time. If things refuse to change even after changing your diet and getting proper rest, we strongly recommend talking to a mental health expert.
A thesis by Laurence Armstrong and Jaci VanHeest even went on to say that the psychological causes of both chronic depression and overtraining may have a lot in common. Their signs, symptoms, brain structures, and immune responses are pretty much the same.
6. Getting Sick Often
Another widely accepted sign that you might be overworking your body is regular sickness. Don’t take us wrong even a person who has a perfect immune system can fall ill sometimes. However, there are times when you observe yourself to be coughing often or sneezing after a cold bath it could be a sign that your body isn’t getting the attention it deserves.
Your body has an immune system to fight off germs that can cause virals and infections but when we overtrain daily without rest, our immune system gets weak and is unable to repair itself. There is a significant drop in its ability to fend off harmful germs which lead us to get sick more often than usual. This is the same reason an injury takes more time to heal when your body is tired.
If all these signs align with your symptoms then we strongly suggest you take a week or two off training and give your body a chance to rebuild itself.
Although there are plenty signs that can indicate that you might have overworked your body, these six signs are the most prominent of them all. It is also easier to observe these signs than the rest which should help you in taking prompt actions.
Okay if you’re reading further then we believe you seem to resonate with the signs mentioned above.
In that case, there are a couple of things that need your immediate attention before things get worse.
We take a look at the things you could do to avoid putting your body through unbearable stress.
1. Get Proper Sleep:
This is the most important of them all. Since your body is rebuilding itself while you rest, it is extremely important that you get proper sleep. Some individuals may need as much as nine hours of sleep and it is perfectly natural for you to do that, The lack of proper sleep has been linked to mental health problems that only get bigger from here.
2. Do not train throughout the week:
Do not be surprised if each point we mention diverts to proper rest. Yes, we can’t stress it enough! It is recommended that you take at least two days off weights from the gym in order to let your body do the required. However, if you are too stubborn we suggest skipping weights on a Wednesday or Thursday and strictly confide to cardio.
3. Keep a check on your diet:
This is for the people who are on strict diets and do not understand the importance of each meal. You should have a proper diet containing essential vitamins and nutrients that play an important part in your regular body functions. Give extra importance to both your pre-workout and post workout diets.
4. Keep Adjusting your workout:
Again if you really have no snooze button then at least consider changing your workout cycle. What we mean is if you are lifting considerably heavy amounts for a week, then decrease the intensity of your workout for the next 6 days. Do this regularly to avoid overtraining your body. This will ensure that your body gets ample time to rest itself and rebuild lost tissues.
A set of experts also recommend following this with only cardio workouts in the gym a
week for maximum results.
These measures could help you with getting over the symptoms of an overworked body. You will naturally feel the change after a few days when the lackluster feelings are gone. You will be more focused, positive and observe certain zeal in your daily activities.
