Overtraining and overreaching

BURNOUTS, staleness, over-fatigue, and unexplained underperformance syndrome (UPS) are some other terms used to describe a decrease in performance because of excessive training.

Overtraining is caused by training, inadequate periods of rest and recovery, and failure to taper training before competition. When the effects are short-term, overtraining is called overreaching.Overtraining syndrome refers to the conditioning results from overtraining.While recovery from overreaching can be achieved with a few days of rest, overtraining syndrome can last as long as six months.Susceptibility to overtraining may increase when an athlete is highly motivated but failed to plan long-term training schedules to achieve specific gaols.Manifestations of overtraining include increased or decreased resting heart rate, decrease in body mass, muscle tenderness, increased risk for infection, flu-like symptoms and a decrease in performance.An overtrained athlete may exhibit one or more of these symptoms, and markers of overtraining in endurance athletes may be different from those in athletes involved in anaerobic sports such as weight-lifting.The best “treatment” for overtraining syndrome is prevention.Training programmes need to be carefully prescribed, and athletes should be provided with ample opportunity for rest and recovery.As a general rule, a hard training session should be followed by one or two days of less intense training and adequate recovery.One of the advantages of a periodised training programme is that time for physical and mental recovery is incorporated into the training.Too much training for too long a duration is a key factor in the development of overtraining, syndrome.However, if the rest period lasts several weeks, training-induced adaptations will decline, and performance expectations may therefore need to be modified.Medical examinations, nutritional guidance and psychological counselling should also be part of the recovery process.Team medics should get to know their athletes’ needs, based on knowledge of exercise science and consideration of individual needs and goals.Athletic training programmes should be designed to improve athletic performance, reduce the risk of injury and enhance the potential for adherence to lifelong physical activity programmes.Since it takes years of training to achieve high levels of performance, training should be viewed as a gradual process and athletes should be provided with adequate time for the rest and recovery.The art and science of training athletes involves modifying the training programme to maintain an effective training stimulus while recognising individual difference in motivation and stress tolerance.* Donatha Gawanab is a local sport medic and will be the official medic for the Namibian team at the Olympic Games in Beijing next month.When the effects are short-term, overtraining is called overreaching.Overtraining syndrome refers to the conditioning results from overtraining.While recovery from overreaching can be achieved with a few days of rest, overtraining syndrome can last as long as six months.Susceptibility to overtraining may increase when an athlete is highly motivated but failed to plan long-term training schedules to achieve specific gaols.Manifestations of overtraining include increased or decreased resting heart rate, decrease in body mass, muscle tenderness, increased risk for infection, flu-like symptoms and a decrease in performance.An overtrained athlete may exhibit one or more of these symptoms, and markers of overtraining in endurance athletes may be different from those in athletes involved in anaerobic sports such as weight-lifting.The best “treatment” for overtraining syndrome is prevention.Training programmes need to be carefully prescribed, and athletes should be provided with ample opportunity for rest and recovery.As a general rule, a hard training session should be followed by one or two days of less intense training and adequate recovery.One of the advantages of a periodised training programme is that time for physical and mental recovery is incorporated into the training.Too much training for too long a duration is a key factor in the development of overtraining, syndrome.However, if the rest period lasts several weeks, training-induced adaptations will decline, and performance expectations may therefore need to be modified.Medical examinations, nutritional guidance and psychological counselling should also be part of the recovery process.Team medics should get to know their athletes’ needs, based on knowledge of exercise science and consideration of individual needs and goals.Athletic training programmes should be designed to improve athletic performance, reduce the risk of injury and enhance the potential for adherence to lifelong physical activity programmes.Since it takes years of training to achieve high levels of performance, training should be viewed as a gradual process and athletes should be provided with adequate time for the rest and recovery.The art and science of training athletes involves modifying the training programme to maintain an effective training stimulus while recognising individual difference in motivation and stress tolerance.* Donatha Gawanab is a local sport medic and will be the official medic for the Namibian team at the Olympic Games in Beijing next month.