Overtraining...

Everyone dreams of large muscles, great definition, awesome strength etc while going to gym. In the zeal some over do it giving way to a weaker body and smaller muscles. This is generally called overtraining. Overtraining is a very simple phenomenon and can be very easily avoided. Causes behind overtraining :

• Not enough rest : This is the most frequent cause. People simply workout too often. In the process of exercising, you break muscles and wait for your body to repair and build more to cope up with the next onslaught. Your body requires some time to recuperate but if you workout the same muscle again, you break some more muscles before the previous ones have been repaired. This continues and you go on losing muscles and consequently strength. Simple, isn't it ? This may also happen if you work a different muscle groups really really hard on cosecutive days. Ofcourse, the above process aplies here also.
• Not enough food : This is not so common (atleast what I've seen) but still if you don't supply your body with enough building blocks, your body takes longer to repair and the above phenomenon happens.
• Some disease : This is pretty common with those who plan there own workouts and don't get their medical check up done.

How do you know that you are overtraining?

• First of all you won't gain the amount of muscles you expected. This is so. You may be gaining muscles but still overtraining, ie, your body is not building all the muscles it possibly could. You'll know it if you are experienced. Otherwise let your trainer help you.
• You are not gaining that much strength as you expected (Almost same as above). I mean the kind of strength you feel while doing your daily tasks.
• You feel weak.
• You don't get the pump you used to get.
• You don't feel excited while going to gym. This may be due to other reasons as well but generally those who overtrain feel like skipping gym and it takes some mental effort on there part to get them there.
• You don't feel good/happy after your normal workout. Normally after a workout session, I feel very energetic, alert, happy (yeah tired too, but much better then before netering the gym). Those who overtrain feel bogged down. I personally use it as an indication that I've overdone it. Still I don't know how professional with all those drugs and the level of intensity must feel. But for normal guys, you can rely on it.
• Your 1rm doesn't increase. Generally after a month or so, your poundage remains same.

What to do to avoid/prevent overtraining.

First of all stop doing exercises for a day or two. Then write down everything about your routines, splits, rests, diet, your gym-history, medical-history and whatever you think plays a role in your muscle gain on a piece of paper. All this information may seem irrelevant but trust me, it may have nothing to do with your problem but you neve know. Also, you may come up with some routines etc with all this knowledge. And ofcourse, your trainer/doctor will be able to advice you better with this. Now simply visit your trainer and doctor(if you or your trainer feels that a medical checkup is necessary). This is quite simple (may be disappointing). I must tell you again that your trainer is the one peson in the world who can help you out of the rut and into the world of muscles.

Still is you think that you must do something about overtraining yourself, read on. As a rule of thumb stop for a while, find exact 1rm, use weights accordingly, rest more, eat proper and you'll get out of the rut. More specifically, do the following :

• If you were going great before and if it seems like you stopped gaining when you increased the poundage, just get to the point you were doing good and this time increase lesser pounds.
• Study your workout plan and see if you can find something like doing biceps on two consecutive days etc. This is common with splits, refer to the article on splits or your trainer for details. This commonly happens when you do triceps one day and bench press the next day, for example.
• Carefully count your calory intake. Refer to a standard chart and change your diet plan as necessary. By calories I mean all the nutrients. So, see if you eat too much carbs or too much proteins or if you are neglecting required vitamins, minerals etc. Try to increase these basic nutrients. Also drink enough water.
• See if you take your meals at regular intervals. If you are working out at good intensity levels, you need to take meals every 3-4 hours.
• Carefully study how much you sleep. If you ask me, I'd say that don't go for what Edison might have said, an average person must SLEEP (not lie down) AT LEAST 8 hours a day. Do you feel sleepy during the day? I getout of the bed only when my I wake up quite naturally (no alarms) and my brain feels like an engine turned on to its full power ie, when I really alert, happy and cool (I don't sleep more then 8-9 hours a day). Whats the point of getting up with a bogged down feeling and frustration. Listen to your body, after all your body is what is getting rest.
• While working out too, listen to your body. Stop when it says no more. Don't over do anything. Your body is your best spotter. It'll tell you when you are doing something wrong or more required. Just listen to it.
• Ask yourself, if you are really overtraining. Many a time people can't gain muscle mass as much they used to just because of "staleness". Try changing your workout plan.
• If you are injured or think that you may be suffering from some disease, visit your doc immediately.