The overtraining

By Dr. Marco Siffi

Overtraining is an imbalance of training that occurs when the physical activity practiced is too intense, so that the organism fails, in the recovery times, to eliminate the accumulated fatigue. This adaptive imbalance, also known as overtraining, causes a continuous state of psychophysical stress, which culminates in the staleness syndrome (refusal to train), damaging athletic performance and making the body more vulnerable to infection. It is possible to believe that an athlete incapable of complete recovery within 72 hours of maximal physical effort is suffering from overtraining syndrome. (7) (5) Overtaining is a phenomenon capable of affecting over 65% of athletes over the course of their competitive careers. (6) (8)

Some symptoms of overtraining include:

• Repeatedly poor performance that cannot be explained
• Sensation of fatigue, muscle pain, depression;
• Increased vulnerability to infections and gastrointestinal disorders;
• Sleep disorders and weight loss;
• Overload injuries;
• Increased resting heart rate and blood pressure;
• Variations of the hematocrit;
• Changes in the hemoglobin rate;
• Decreased testosterone level;
• Modification of the testosterone / cortisol ratio in favor of the latter.

When a professional athlete goes overtraining, the problem must be immediately identified and addressed, to avoid endangering the racing season. Although these situations are found mainly in competitive athletes, it is not uncommon to observe them even among amateur sportsmen and fitness enthusiasts who train hard. There are some frequent metabolic parameters in overtraning, such as the increase in ceruloplasmin, urea and CPK. In endurance athletes there is a slight anemia, leukopenia, iron deficiency, reduced serum albumin, hypoglycemia, hypotriglyceridemia, low LDL and VLDL, increased noradrenaline plasma levels, with decreased basal catecholamine excretion. It is possible to carry out some laboratory tests for the diagnosis of overtraining, such as the search for serum glutamine concentration, which constantly decreases in overtraning, or the salivary IgA dosage, considered the best marker of the altered immune status, the speed of sedimentation, the rate of gammaglobulins, the CK and magnesium content. (1) (2) (3)

Another very important factor to consider is the psychological one; in fact too intense training can induce the athlete to feelings of inadequacy, discouragement up to depression and chronic fatigue syndrome. For this reason tests capable of measuring the psychological state and the level of mood are useful. (6) In conclusion, as a general rule, the basis of almost all the phenomena of overtraining is an incorrect dosage of the relationship between training intensity and recovery . In the case of competitive athletes, however, the risks can also derive from the race calendars, from the wrong planning of the sporting season and from the lifestyle: lack of sleep, repeated stress, food errors can create the conditions to determine the onset of the syndrome .

Recovery planning to prevent overtraining

The rational increase of workloads causes positive functional changes, ie the so-called supercompensation. However, often the high volumes and intensity of current training sessions, to which a growing number of competitions is added, place all those who have to plan training relevant problems, especially with regards to an optimal relationship between training and competition loads. When talking about recovery measures it is necessary to distinguish passive measures, in which the athlete is subjected to interventions such as physiotherapy, hydrotherapy, thermotherapy, electrostimulation and acupuncture, from active ones, in which the athlete practices light aerobic work, muscle stretching, autogenic training. The recovery between different frequencies and training units and after a race should be done through pauses that allow the complete re-establishment of the organism. Too often, however, the alternation of commitments and recoveries is underestimated, inducing the onset of fatigue and overtraining. The planning of a physiological recovery program must be customized for each athlete, taking into consideration a whole series of aspects relating to the subject's living habits.

The objectives of physiological recovery measures must be aimed at:

• Reduction of the catabolic period favoring the anabolic one
• Acceleration of the restoration of body homeostasis
• Rebalancing of the immune and hormonal status
• Prevention of repeated microtrauma injuries
• Elimination of contractures, states of tension and pain
• Restoration of energy stocks

In drawing up a correct recovery plan, we need to consider all those elements that can promote bodily homeostasis, for example:

• proper workload planning
• waiver of competitions and training during illness and injury
• general physical and mental condition of the athlete
• information reported by the athlete

It is important to know that tissues and processes of reaction to fatigue have different times of recovery, as reported in Tables 1 and 2.

Table 1 Muscle recovery times in athletes (from Winning fatigue, Sport & Medicina, 2004).

Table 2 Regeneration times in recovery processes (from Vincere la toilaggio, Sport & Medicina, 2004).

Once all the factors listed above have been considered, it is important to establish which forms of recovery are best suited to the fatigued athlete. The application of the different measures must take place in the recovery phase itself, if not even in that of supercompensation.

Among the main forms of recovery are:

• light aerobic work, to produce endorphins and eliminate metabolic waste;
• muscle stretch, to eliminate motor imbalances;
• anti-fatigue massage, to restore the right muscle tone;
• thermotherapy, electrotherapy and acupuncture;
• integration of fluids lost during exertion and essential nutrients to restore energy supplies;

There are also important factors such as the psychological climate that is created within the group, the relationships that are established with the coach and his companions, the emotional characteristics of the athlete, a correct dietary intake before and during the race or training. In conclusion, it is recalled that training or participation incentives and recovery measures represent a unitary process and must therefore be considered as a global system. Only in this way is it possible to have a safe tool for the control and regulation of performance capabilities, reactions to recovery and adaptations to stimuli. (3) (4)

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