Train train train.... this is sometimes all we see and all we hear when it comes to us going hard at our goals. We make sure we don't miss a training session and we make sure we train as hard as we can to get the most out of our training sessions. Train too much without resting and you could see your fitness progress grind to a halt or even go into reverse. Exercise releases stress hormones and, just as working long hours with no days off can negatively impact your health, too much exercise without enough rest can lead to burnout.
Also known as over training syndrome, burning out can affect your central nervous system, throwing everything out of whack. Your central nervous system is made up of different parts including the sympathetic nervous system - which triggers fight or flight mode - and the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps calm your body down again. If you're not taking the time you need to rest and recover, then the constant stress of exercise can mess with your system's natural responses.
This can leave you feeling constantly tired and drained. Workouts can feel much harder than they used to and you may struggle to do exercises you found fairly straightforward before.
One super important thing most of us over looks is resting and not just sitting at home but having a well planned rest schedule to maximize the recovery from all the breakdown we forced with the training.
Recovery from resting is the one thing we can not go without and rest is the link that we use to get better when we are not training.
A major highlight of recovery immediately after exercise has to do with topping up energy stores and fluids which are lost during exercise and optimizing protein synthesis which is the process of increasing the protein content of the muscles cells in order to prevent muscle breakdown and increasing muscle size and strength. Protein synthesis is facilitated by eating the right foods in a post-exercise meal. This is also a time for soft tissue (in other words muscles, tendons and ligaments) to repair and remove chemicals that build up as a result of cell activity during the exercise.
Long-term recovery techniques are those that are built into a seasonal training program. Most well-designed training schedules will incorporate recovery days and/or weeks that are built into an annual training schedule. This is also the reason why athletes and coaches change their training programs throughout the year, add cross-training, modify workout types and make changes in intensity, time, distance and all other types of training variables.
When preparing your next training program make sure you make the time in your program for rest and don't be scared to make it equal to the training. This might feel like you are cheating but the next time you step into the gym or on the field and you suddenly kick ass just remember that it was all worth it.
Gym Cat
For the strong