Its physical effects include lethargy, decreased performance, delay in recovery and an overall decline in your fitness progress, among other things. Mentally, it can make you feel utterly bored or drained out. So much so, that you begin to dread working out.
Burnout Solution
Forget hardcore workouts or heavy weight training. Now is the time to do something soothing for your body. Try a gentle yoga workout or find a Pilates video on YouTube. Think of this as active recovery, a time for your mind to rest while you soothe a tired, overworked body.
The time will vary depending on the sport and the level of activity, but most recovery takes between 4 to 12 weeks. As you recover from overtraining, you can still do a bit of low-intensity aerobic exercise to keep fit and healthy while not doing your normal workouts.
Regular exercise is pivotal to good health, but your body can only take so much. Over-training without rest or the appropriate fuel, will place a stress on your body that can trigger a range of symptoms such as physical and mental exhaustion, muscle and joint soreness, poor performance and injury.
Just like you can experience burnout from pushing yourself too hard professionally, you can also experience burnout from overexercising. Regularly check in with yourself and how you're feeling, and if you have noticed any of these warning signs, it might be time to mix up your workout schedule.
Burnout is thought to be a result of the physical and emotional stress of training. Overtraining syndrome happens when an athlete fails to recover adequately from training and competition.
Burnout-related headaches are likely a result of psychological stress, according to a systematic review published in 2017. And stomach issues, such as pain, bloating, and nausea, tend to be more prevalent whenever you're stressed. Stress can cause diarrhea or constipation as well.
Not everyone can take time off from work. But making small adjustments to your everyday routine can alleviate stress in the long run. Building healthy habits like a morning walk, less caffeine, or daily meditation can help you wind down and recover from burnout.
Aerobic exercise, like running, can help your brain recover from mental exhaustion or burnout, according to new research. This may be because this type of exercise provides recovery for your cognitive processes and nervous system so they can function more effectively.
Exercise improves your body image and sense of strength, as well as your own capabilities. Increases motivation. One of the common symptoms of burnout is a lack of motivation and feelings of depression. Exercise mitigates this so you feel energized to take on what's next.
Exercise-related symptoms of overtraining:
(1) A plateau or decline in workout performance or progress. (2) A perception of increased exertion during “normal” or “easy” workouts. (3) Excessive sweating or overheating. (4) Unusual feelings of heaviness, stiffness, or soreness in muscles.
In contrast, being lazy is a negative trait, an unwillingness to work or put in any effort to do something. To sum it up, burnout isn't a choice – it is a result of being overworked. Laziness, on the other hand, is a choice.
These physical and emotional stressors may contribute to athletic burnout – creating a link between stress and more severe burnout symptoms. Other researchers suggest that burnout is more than a side effect of chronic stress.
One night of poor sleep shouldn't have to impact your workout routine, but chronic sleep deprivation leading to multiple days of exhaustion is another matter, experts say. It may not be wise to hit the gym or play a sport when you're barely putting one foot in front of the other, said sleep specialist Dr.
Schabram said, “employees who cannot leave and are not getting support can still help themselves.” Dr. Schabram's research suggests that small, deliberate acts of compassion toward yourself and others can help reduce feelings of burnout, whether it is short-term or chronic.
But there's no recommended upper limit. That's because the point at which you're overdoing it is different for everyone. For example, a healthy marathon runner can exercise a lot more than the average person without causing harm. You need to watch for signs that indicate you're working out too much.
That answer depends on the length and intensity of your workouts. If you workout for 2 hours straight at a very high intensity, then do it again every day, you could very well be overtraining.
The only-well established method to recover from overtraining is rest. Recovery ordinarily takes between four and 14 weeks but depends on your sport and the degree of physical damage. It is recommended you alternate rest days with your workouts.