Can Too Much Exercise be Bad?

If the title grabbed your attention because you are looking for an excuse not to exercise, this blog is not for you. If however it grabbed your attention because it seems like the harder you work out the worse your performance seems to be getting, I am writing this just for you.

Metabolic over-reaching is when despite regular exercise your performance is not improving. It is associated with fatigue, depression, increased infections, and muscle weakness. After resting 72 hours your performance will return; unless of course it goes undiagnosed and you continue to increase your work outs, at which point it develops into a condition known as metabolic over training syndrome where you do not recover your performance and progressively worsen.

It is well known that you need carbohydrates before a workout to feed your muscles. If you eat too many carbohydrates, your body makes cortisol to transport the cortisol into fat tissue to be stored for later use. If you do not consume enough carbohydrates before a workout, your body makes cortisol to transport the stored sugars to your muscles. Prolonged high cortisol levels is unhealthy.

Your adrenal gland 'steals' the hormone pregnenalone to make cortisol. If your body uses your pregnenalone to make cortisol there is not enough to make many other hormones Pregnenalone is used to make the hormone DHEA which can become testosterone in men and estrogen as well as progesterone in women. If any one hormone, like cortisol, remains high your all of your other hormones will become less and less balanced.

Prolonged high cortisol levels results in degeneration of the hippocampus due to altered function of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis (HPA). Altered function of the HPA can also be caused by increased interluken-6 (IL-6) associated with over training. A person who has just finished a marathon will have 120 times the normal IL-6 levels. Increased IL-6 levels is associated with fatigue, depression, increased infections, reduced ability to concentrate (in other words the same symptoms that are associated with metabolic over training syndrome). If IL-6 levels remain high, you will gradually continue to worsen.

Prevention and treatment for Metabolic Over training Syndrome.
*Rest for at least 6 hours between work outs
*Rest for at least 6 hours after any stress or infection has resolved before you return to a work out.
*Consume enough carbohydrates before you work out.
*Adequate hydration and minerals
Supplements: Adaptogenic adrenal support, glutathione enhancers or transdermal application with Oxycell, phosphatidylserine high dosages or transdermal with Adrenacalm, Gut support.
*Sometimes it is very important to treat conditions like anemia, altered immune function, food sensitivities, or toxicity issues as well or you will not see improvement.
*Work out in your aerobic heart range (180 - your age = peak aerobic heart range)