Are You Doing Too Much?
Outdoor Fitness|November 2019
Make sure you’re not a casualty of your own enthusiasm when it comes to running. Matt Phillips explains how to stay injury-free
MATT PHILLIPS
Are You Doing Too Much?

One of the most attractive things about running is the convenience element. In contrast to other fitness activities, you don’t have to book a pitch or court and you’re not dependent on the rest of the team turning up for a match. Plus, there is no off-season. With just a half-decent pair of shoes, a top, shorts or leggings, all you need to do is step out of your front door and you’re off. Fantastic, except herein lies the very reason why running presents a high relative risk of injury: it’s extremely easy to do too much.

Overtraining is a word that we often only associate with professional athletes. Running at the speed we do and for such a relatively short time compared to a ‘proper’ runner, we can’t really overtrain, can we? The answer is actually yes, so much so that studies suggest in 80 percent of cases of running-related injury, inappropriate training is a key factor.

The fact of the matter is, regardless of your level of fitness or experience, our bodies all have thresholds. They vary of course from one person to the next, but once you start crossing your own personal thresholds you will begin entering the world of overtraining and the associated risks of pain and injury it typically brings.

SYMPTOMS OF OVERTRAINING

At certain times of the year when you are preparing for competition or have just finished a particularly gruelling session, you may well feel utterly destroyed, but as a rule, you should generally feel that running is improving your day-to-day existence. If you habitually feel any of the following, you could well be suffering from overtraining:

• Constant fatigue and low energy

• Constant stiff sensation in muscles

• Flu-like symptoms

• Not feeling like you’re getting any fitter

• Unable to improve race times

KEY CAUSE OF OVERTRAINING

This story is from the November 2019 edition of Outdoor Fitness.

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This story is from the November 2019 edition of Outdoor Fitness.

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