Overtraining syndrome is a condition that affects athletes, who follow a program which neglects adequate rest and recovery. Overtraining gradually builds with time, and causes the athlete’s performance, health, and mindset to decline. When overtraining occurs, the athlete’s performance decreases, and they develop chronic fatigue, changes in blood lactate variables, a decrease in motivation, neuroendocrine changes, develop an illness, or become injured. Overtraining should not be confused with overreaching. Overreaching is when an athlete completes very demanding training and is fatigued and worn out for a few days afterwards. With proper rest and recovery, the athlete can quickly recover from overreaching. When the rest and recovery is not adequate, the door is opened for the overtraining syndrome to set in. Overtraining is chronic in nature, and develops during the course of a lengthy training program (Bompa & Buzzichelli, 2015).
Athletes train to increase performance. Intense training is required to stimulate the physiological adaptions, which are desired. This intense training requires rest and recovery in order to facilitate the increases in performance. Training programs that follow a proper periodization model, take this into account. When training programs fail to include proper rest and recovery in the training schedule, athletes begin to develop telltale signs of overtraining. These signs and symptoms include fatigued, sore, and tight muscles, a decrease in performance, loss of appetite, increased resting heart rate, irritability, a lack of motivation, and trouble sleeping. There are numerous theories concerning the many different factors that contribute to, and cause overtraining. Some of the theories include low glycogen levels, low glutamine levels, central nervous system fatigue, oxidative stress, autonomic nervous system fatigue, and excessive inflammatory response. All of these theories contribute to understanding the overtraining syndrome. However, existing research has not been able to definitively answer all of the questions (Kreher & Schwartz, 2012).
There is no single way to identify and diagnose overtraining syndrome. There are established ways to look for it. Training logs, recorded heart rates, handgrip dynamometers, and heart rate variability monitors are methods used collectively, to determine if overtraining syndrome is present in an athlete. Other factors that contribute to identifying overtraining include a sudden increase in training volume, intensity, a busy competition schedule, a lack of periodization, or programmed recovery in training schedule, a monotonous training program, and high self-reported stress levels. Outside stressors have to be looked at as possible contributors to overtraining. Questionnaires asking about stressors from home, work, school, relationships and other outside factors can help with identifying overtraining (MacKinnon, 2000).
Athletes can recover from overtraining syndrome by resting, eating properly, staying hydrated, implementing recovery techniques, and by altering the training program until symptoms are gone. It takes different recovery times based upon the individual, and severity of the overtraining. Certain individuals can be more prone to overtraining than others. Athletes should be screened with a risk profile to find out if they have suffered from overtraining before, have a history of medical issues, or are predisposed to any of the symptoms. Overtraining syndrome can be prevented by ensuring that several factors are in place. Some of these factors include early identification and monitoring of susceptible athletes, minimizing known effects, preventing sudden increases in training loads, watching for inadequate dietary intake, managing the competition schedule, individualizing training, periodizing training, and programming recovery training and rest days into the training cycle. By implementing these factors, the risk of overtraining can be greatly reduced (Cardoos, 2015).
References:
Bompa, T.O., & Buzzichelli, C.A. (2015). Periodization training for sports (3rd ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Cardoos, N. (2015). Overtraining syndrome. Current Sports Medicine Reports. Retrieved from http://journals.lww.com/acsm-csmr/Fulltext/2015/05000/Overtraining_Syndrome.7.aspx
Kreher, J., & Schwartz, J. (2012). Overtraining syndrome. Journal of Sports Health. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3435910/
MacKinnon, L. (2000). Overtraining effects on immunity and performance in athletes. Immunology and Cell Biology. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/icb/journal/v78/n5/full/icb200070a.html?foxtrotcallback=true
Athletes train to increase performance. Intense training is required to stimulate the physiological adaptions, which are desired. This intense training requires rest and recovery in order to facilitate the increases in performance. Training programs that follow a proper periodization model, take this into account. When training programs fail to include proper rest and recovery in the training schedule, athletes begin to develop telltale signs of overtraining. These signs and symptoms include fatigued, sore, and tight muscles, a decrease in performance, loss of appetite, increased resting heart rate, irritability, a lack of motivation, and trouble sleeping. There are numerous theories concerning the many different factors that contribute to, and cause overtraining. Some of the theories include low glycogen levels, low glutamine levels, central nervous system fatigue, oxidative stress, autonomic nervous system fatigue, and excessive inflammatory response. All of these theories contribute to understanding the overtraining syndrome. However, existing research has not been able to definitively answer all of the questions (Kreher & Schwartz, 2012).
There is no single way to identify and diagnose overtraining syndrome. There are established ways to look for it. Training logs, recorded heart rates, handgrip dynamometers, and heart rate variability monitors are methods used collectively, to determine if overtraining syndrome is present in an athlete. Other factors that contribute to identifying overtraining include a sudden increase in training volume, intensity, a busy competition schedule, a lack of periodization, or programmed recovery in training schedule, a monotonous training program, and high self-reported stress levels. Outside stressors have to be looked at as possible contributors to overtraining. Questionnaires asking about stressors from home, work, school, relationships and other outside factors can help with identifying overtraining (MacKinnon, 2000).
Athletes can recover from overtraining syndrome by resting, eating properly, staying hydrated, implementing recovery techniques, and by altering the training program until symptoms are gone. It takes different recovery times based upon the individual, and severity of the overtraining. Certain individuals can be more prone to overtraining than others. Athletes should be screened with a risk profile to find out if they have suffered from overtraining before, have a history of medical issues, or are predisposed to any of the symptoms. Overtraining syndrome can be prevented by ensuring that several factors are in place. Some of these factors include early identification and monitoring of susceptible athletes, minimizing known effects, preventing sudden increases in training loads, watching for inadequate dietary intake, managing the competition schedule, individualizing training, periodizing training, and programming recovery training and rest days into the training cycle. By implementing these factors, the risk of overtraining can be greatly reduced (Cardoos, 2015).
References:
Bompa, T.O., & Buzzichelli, C.A. (2015). Periodization training for sports (3rd ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Cardoos, N. (2015). Overtraining syndrome. Current Sports Medicine Reports. Retrieved from http://journals.lww.com/acsm-csmr/Fulltext/2015/05000/Overtraining_Syndrome.7.aspx
Kreher, J., & Schwartz, J. (2012). Overtraining syndrome. Journal of Sports Health. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3435910/
MacKinnon, L. (2000). Overtraining effects on immunity and performance in athletes. Immunology and Cell Biology. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/icb/journal/v78/n5/full/icb200070a.html?foxtrotcallback=true
Eric Dempsey
MS, ISSA Master Trainer
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment