Overtrain and get sick?

T

Tracy740

New member
I started training with a personal trainer 3 days and 3 days taking boxing and kick boxing classes the first of April and started running in the mornings 3 miles 4 days a week. I had not taken a day off(well other then sundays) but had not missed a day that I was supposed to workout, and my PT told me I needed to take a week off to rest because I was at a standstill with my weight loss.

So I wanted to wait until after my 40th BD July 21...... Well my body had other plans and I got sick realllllyyyyy sick. I have not beein ill other then a cold that may have lasted a couple days at most since 2005 so I guess it was my time. I have taken the last 2 weeks off due to being sick.

So my PT seems to think that I got sick due to overtraining. What is the truth behind this or atleast what do the experts say about it?

Thanks much Tracy
 
Last edited:
I'd say it's entirely possible.

Your body needs both exercise and rest, especially when you're doing resistance/weight type work. If you over train and don't take a day off, then you're never allowing your body to recover. Eventually your body will say "whoa ... enough" and force you to recover. For some people that might mean fatigue that forces them to slow down. For others that might mean injury because they've pushed muscle and tendon and bone too far. And for even others that might mean illness.

What you eat can also influence how long and intensely you can train before your body rebels. You're much more likely to be able to push longer and harder for an extended period of time if you're providing proper fuel and nutrition for your body. If you're eating in a calorie deficit and/or not eating the right kinds of foods to support the level of activity you're doing, then yeah, again, your body is eventually going to rebel.

Based on what you describe, you're doing 6 days a week of intense training and kickboxing *plus* running 4 days ... that's a LOT of working out.

So yeah, I'd say listen to your trainer. :)
 
Ok so when I go and figure calories out it is saying I should be at 2475 per day. I assume that is to maintain so I have been trying to hit 15 to 1800 per day, but am thinking I should be trying for more? I have got the exercise part down now it is the diet that I need help with.
 
Holy smokes. You're doing all that on 1500 cals a day? I seem to recall from your earlier post that you weigh about 210, right?

So I'm calculating a maintenance of around 3150. A 20% deficit from that would be 2520. A 30% deficit from that would be 2205.

I'd say given your level of activity, you should be eating at LEAST 2000 calories ... and better around 2250.

And given the amount of training you're doing, I'd say you should be aiming to get a minimum of 30% of those calories from protein. That would be around 168g of protein per day - give or take.

Lots of veggies, lots of protein, then make up the rest with fruit, complex carbs, and healthy fats.

Edited: I'd say this also ties back to your earlier question of why you're not losing weight as fast as you want to. Having reasonable expectations is important. But there's also the element of nourishing your body. If you're over-training and not eating enough to support the work you're doing, then that's another reason your weight loss might stall or slow. Your body is designed to protect itself and if you start putting heavy demands on it and not providing nutrition, your weight loss will slow or even stall out as your body fights to nourish itself.
 
Last edited:
I think it might be that. As when im doing a really long run at school for a long time then do more runs at school in the week i can feel slightly ill .
( I just read the calories you eating. Thats pretty low for that amount of exercise that you are doing like kara has said.


Kara, u got full inbox...lol
 
I was doing ALL of that on 15 to 18 a day. I was thinking the same thing and I just talked to my PT he told me no less then 2000 a day and try to hit between 2000 and 2300. I have done a couple different calculators and one came up with 2475 and another 2700 something with the others hitting in between. I am now at 207#'s 5'8" female and only working out 6 days a week for 60 to 75 minutes per day, no running because of my stupid hip issue and I do not want to take it back up to quick after being so sick.

I guess I can not and should not have really been complaining about how fast or slow I had been losing, but when I see females around my age saying they lost 60 pounds in 6 months I am kinda like what the ..................... It has taken me about 1 yr to lose 65 pounds. Of course I had fertility drugs, hcg shots a pregnancy and a miscarriage all mixed in there.

Since April I HAVE lost 23 #'s so that is almost 8 #'s a month. I have decided no matter how fast or slow it goes that as long as it is going!!
 
Here's the formula I use and it has worked well so far.

I start with 15 calories per pound of bodyweight for someone who is reasonably active (e.g. works out 2x or 3x per week).

So for you at 207 lbs, multiply that by 15 and you get 3105 calories to maintain.
Subtract 20% of that (621) and you get 2484.
Subtract 30% of that (931) and you get 2177.

Either way, that's significantly above the 1500-1800 you've been eating. :)

When you add to that your current workout schedule, I think you qualify as more than just "reasonably active" ... so I'm thinking that eating at the higher end of the scale would be just fine for you and honestly, I think you'll find if you eat more and add more protein in, you'll lose weight faster. I know that's counter-intuitive, but you'd be surprised what your body will do when you provide it with proper nutrition. :)
 
Last edited:
I concur with Kara, that's way too little food intake for your output. I am just recovering from overtraining, and you definitely want to put the breaks on that situation. I was unable to work out for 3 months after I sustained injuries, illnesses and mental burnout from hitting it way too hard and not recovering properly. Rest and recovery are crucial not only for performance, but also for your health. You can google Overtraining Syndrome to learn more, and here's just one that discusses it.

One thing that I have seen many trainers agree upon is that a pre-meal and post meal (like within 30 minutes of exercise completion) is crucial for proper recovery via nutrition. For example, I now eat a banana and a hard boiled egg about an hour before I workout and I drink a recovery drink I make using orange juice and hemp protein powder (if I was really hitting it hard, like over an hour, I might add some glucose to it as well)--this is the only time I would recommend eating whether you felt like it or not (I believe weight loss is achieved and maintained by eating when you're hungry and stopping when satisfied throughout the day). I don't drink juice normally, but from all I've read and researched, the sugar taken immediately after workouts (and during if you're doing an endurance sport, again for longer than an hour) goes right into your muscles and stores as glycogen, ready to fuel your next workout (I'm sure there are others on this forum who can give you a more detailed metabolic description of the importance replenishing glycogen stores . . .)--this is so important. It is said that "fat is burned in the flame created by carbohydrates". This does not advocate, btw, that you load up on refined carbs. Part One of the book Paleo Diet For Athletes does a really nice job of outlining the nutrition needed for recovery after a workout. Even if you don't agree with the paleo diet philosophy (I'm still mulling it over) the nutrition info given on the recover and pre-workout is terrific and I am currently following the advice.

On a sidenote, not only was I able to maintain my weight effortlessly while I recovered for 3 months (doing little more than sitting around and resting, literally, it was all I was capable of--I got fatigued just strolling around the block), but I was surprised that I didn't detrain as much as I thought I would. I'm still pretty strong and the muscle definition is coming back after just 1 week back to workouts (which I am taking nice and slow!). That pleasantly amazed me. Take care of your body, and your body takes care of you.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top