Too much sport is like not enough

We’re always being told to get fit and exercise. After all, physical activity is synonymous with health. But it’s important to remember that even when you’re doing sport, it’s possible to overdo it and burn yourself out. So let’s take a look at what exactly overtraining is, how it manifests itself and what you can do to avoid it.

Overtraining often occurs when an athlete puts in too much training without taking the necessary rest to recover properly. Essentially, it’s an accumulation of fatigue. The body is the victim of an energy imbalance: it consumes more energy than it can store. Too rapid an increase in training volume or intensity, too many high-level competitions, physical and psychological stress and, of course, insufficient rest are among the causes of this phenomenon.

Audrey, an accomplished 21-year-old athlete, takes part in multiple sporting events, is in perfect health and there seems to be no stopping her. Last year, however, she became exhausted. Going to training became a chore, and she suffered from irritability and extreme fatigue, despite getting enough sleep. She also lost her appetite and her resting heart rate was abnormally high. “Climbing the stairs even took too much effort. My body couldn’t take it anymore,” she recounts. The cause? The intensity of her training was too high.

Athletes affected by overtraining syndrome can also suffer from insomnia, frequent injuries, immunosuppression and sometimes a reduction in lean body mass. It’s often the coach who realizes that his or her athlete has exceeded his or her tolerance level and is in a state of overtraining. Several days, even weeks, of rest, followed by a gradual return to training, are necessary to give the body the time it needs to recover.

It’s important to listen to your body. Do you feel sore, tired or heavy? Take a rest. It’s quite possible that muscles need an extra day to recover properly. Rest should also be an integral part of training, and all athletes should adhere to an annual downtime period to give their bodies a break. “Joints, tissues and muscles benefit from these specific sports practice breaks. The return is a little slower, but you can see the effects of rest as the weeks go by… it’s often one step back for two or three steps forward,” says trainer Antoine Vallières. So don’t sacrifice these periods of recovery for fear of losing what you’ve already gained.

Finally, let’s not forget that nutrition plays a major role in recovery. So don’t hesitate to call on the services of a sports nutritionist to ensure proper nutrition before and after training.

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