In our ambitions to push our muscular development to the limit, sometimes we cross the line and we begin to over train.
What is overtraining?
"Overtraining" is a problem that we all have to deal with at one time or another. Overtraining occurs when the body surpasses its ability to recover workouts. As you must know, gym training puts tremendous stress on the muscles of your body. This constraint is necessary to obtain the adaptive response that is necessary for muscle growth.
But, too much of a good thing can be harmful. Too much stress on a muscle group can lead to overtraining in this muscle group and too much overtraining of several muscle groups can lead to the entire body being overtrained. When you are overtrained, your progress stops abruptly.
Training works a little as follows for me '' two steps forward for a step backwards. In the gym, I train my muscles with rigor, causing stress on the muscle tissue (a step back). Outside of the gym, I rest and feed my body properly, my muscles adapt to stress (two steps forward). The result of my efforts is that my muscles continue to develop and become stronger and stronger. I keep a progression from one training to another.
Now, if I overtrain, my "one step back" becomes "three steps back" at this time my body requires considerably more recovery time outside the gym. In other words, I train too much and do not progress as much as I should. You are training to your limits is a good thing because this is the only way you will advance your bodybuilding. However, you must be careful not to cross the line of overtraining.
Overtraining symptoms
• Sense of illness: colds, flus, runny nose, diarrhea.
• Loss of interest in training.
• Pain in the joints, muscles too sore.
• Loss of appetite.
• -Nervousness and inability to sleep.
• -Lower strength.
• Lack of motivation or depression.
• loss of muscle size and / or decreased body weight.
These are just some of the most common symptoms of overtraining.
A more scientific tool that you can use to monitor overtraining is to take your pulse first thing in the morning. If you discover that your pulse is high by more than 8-10 beats per minute throughout its normal range, then it is possible that you become overtrained.
How to recover from overtraining
Your answer should be to reduce your workout load, or take a little extra recovery time. In the past, whenever I felt over-trained, I simply took some extra time off the gym or did an active recovery by training 2 days a week for 2 weeks with lighter loads and more repetitions . With this method I do not lose my earnings, but I maintain them.
Active recovery is simply a term used to describe a period during which exercise is performed at a lighter intensity and workload, in order to allow the body to recover. "Passive recovery" is a term used to describe complete rest. That being said, I wholeheartedly recommend that you use the high recovery method mentioned above to stimulate increased blood flow to your muscles, to build more capillarity and for other effects on muscle components that are not usually worked as much as with the heavyweights / that I normally recommend.
Active recovery Program exemple :
MONDAY
Exercise SETS REPS REST
BARBELL INCLINE BENCH PRESS 4 7-10 120 SEC
BARBELL FLAT BENCH PRESS 3 7-10 90 SEC LAT PULL DOWN NUTRAL GRIP 4 7-10 120 SEC
SEATED CABLE ROW 3 7-10 90 SEC
SEATED DUMBELL PRESS 3 7-10 90 SEC DUMBELL LATERAL RAISE 3 7-10 60 SEC
ABDOMINAL CRUSHES 3 7-10 60 SEC
THURSDAY
LEG PRESS 3 7-10 120 SEC
LEG EXTENSION 3 7-10 90 SEC LYING LEG CURL 3 7-10 60 SEC
BB CURL 3 7-10 60 SEC
SCOTT CURL 3 7-10 60 SEC TRICEPS PUSH DOWN 3 7-10 60 SEC
ONE ARM FRENCH PRESS 3 7-10 60 SEC
How to avoid overtraining
Things you can do to avoid overtraining include:
The first thing you need to do is increase your caloric intake and make sure you follow the right diet.
• Increasing your protein intake. Try protein supplements
• Add L-glutamine to your diet
• Use massages.
• Change the workload in your regular training program as I described above.
• Use a creatine supplement.
• Use vitamin D
• Use of vitamin C.
• Increase your fluid intake
• Think positively!
I hope this has been able to help you identify and correct overtraining.
If you push yourself as I do in training be careful the line is thin. You have to push hard to stimulate muscle growth, but doing too much will result in overtraining.
On this, good training to all
Your Coach
Louis Chartier