Excessive exercise for weight loss comes in various forms with debilitating consequences. Aerobic and resistance exercises can be done to such an extreme you will suffer from overtraining syndrome. The American Council on Exercise advises excessive exercise can lead to overtraining, a condition characterized by persistent plateaus, decreased performance and overuse injuries.
Types
You can excessively exercise with any type of activity: walking, running, playing sports, weight training, swimming, stair climbing and biking. For example, running 5 miles every day, working the same muscles in the gym four days a week, playing basketball daily and even cleaning your house excessively can lead to overtraining.
Misconceptions
It is a common belief that if a little bit of exercise is good, then more exercise is better, especially if weight loss is the goal. Although 30 minutes of aerobic activity most days of the week will improve your health, 90 minutes of aerobics every day will not lead to safe and permanent body-fat loss. It is not only the quantity of exercise, but the correct combination of intensity and type of exercise that will lead you to safe and lasting body-fat loss.
Consequences
Initially, you will notice a decrease in energy where you will not be able to finish a workout. Then, you will notice an increase in muscle strains and joint pains. Next, you will experience chronic fatigue. Symptoms of chronic fatigue include weight loss plateaus, decreased performance, loss of appetite, mood and sleep disturbances, an increased resting heart rate and increased injuries.
Solutions
You can lose body fat permanently without excessive exercise. Ease into an exercise and healthy eating program. Much of your body fat loss success starts in the kitchen and on paper. Write down specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound goals that can change as your fitness and body-fat loss improves.
Eat breakfast if you are not a breakfast eater. Eat five to six small meals a day, where you get 1.2 to 1.7 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, for 1,500 (women) to 2,200 (men) calories a day.
Complete three to four days of two different aerobic activities, varying between easy, moderate and difficult intensities. Easy workouts last up to 60 minutes, moderate exercise about 45 minutes and difficult cardio no more than 20 minutes. You only need to do weight training two to three days a week, focusing on different muscles groups for no longer than one hour.
Warnings
It is essential you get a medical checkup before engaging in a weight-loss program. This is particularly important if you have current health conditions including but not limited to diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, arthritis, are obese, have been smoking or are currently sedentary.
References
- "Personal Trainer Manual"; American Council on Exercise; 1997
- ACSM: Overtraining Syndrome, A Clinical Perspective
Member Comments