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Overtraining

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Scott Ohran · · SLC · Joined Aug 2013 · Points: 0

I'm beginning to think I'm overtrained.

I have been training indoors for about seven weeks now, and am beginning to feel burned out. I don't train, or even climb, more than three days per week but my sessions are pretty hard and generally last for about 3 hours, though I do rest a lot between sets/burns and some of this time is devoted to stretching and light antagonist work.

This last week though, I'll feel well rested but find that I can only climb my best (in a power phase and doing lots of limit bouldering at the moment, so a good amount of actual climbing now) for like 40 minutes on top of a warmup. After that, my heart rate starts to rise and I feel crazy fatigued. I've been resting for three days now and still feel really fatigued. My resting heart rate feels a lot higher than normal, I can't stop eating, and I feel super deflated.

I know an extended rest is in order, and I'm fine with that. I stopped seeing much progress in my sessions so I am going to start with a week off then ease back into things.

Does anybody have experience with this? What is the best way to get back on my program and not derail everything completely? I've never felt like this and I'm wondering if anyone else has.

Thanks doods!

Monomaniac · · Morrison, CO · Joined Oct 2006 · Points: 17,295

Scott, that doesn't sound like overtraining to me. What's your diet like?

Benjamin Chapman · · Small Town, USA · Joined Jan 2007 · Points: 18,818

Scott.....ditto on your diet. Just speculating, but are you a vegetarian or vegan? Could be an iron deficiency and/or anemia.
Symptoms:
general fatigue
weakness
shortness of breath
dizziness
pale skin
tingling or crawling feeling in legs

Scott Ohran · · SLC · Joined Aug 2013 · Points: 0

I've wondered if my diet is the problem. I've actually been tested for anemia and diabetes in the past - thankfully I am neither.

I wouldn't consider myself vegetarian or vegan, but I do tend to eat that way. I eat meat maybe once a month and limit how much dairy I eat because its harsh on my skin. I eat a lot of eggs, potatoes, beans/lentils, rices and other grains, oats, nuts, lots fruits and veg. I eat mostly whole foods but will be the first to admit I need to diversify my diet.

To be honest Benjamin, I do feel a few of these symptoms. Right now mostly general fatigue and weakness. Maybe a shortness of breath. My resting heart rate is still really high, too. I somtimes wonder if I slipped into a catabolic state and I'm having a hard time shaking it. On top of heavy training, I just moved to a new city and started a new job so I may be a bit stressed and that's not helping anything.

If it's not overtraining then it is an underlying problem that I've been experiencing every once in a while for about a year now. Sometimes I just cannot stop eating but I don't gain much weight, and feel very lethargic. Should I start eating meat again? I'm not opposed to it but I don't think I'm protein deficient. I don't count calories but eat roughly 120-150g protein a day. I'm 21 years old and maybe 150 if it matters.

Thanks for the replies! Any insight you can give me is a huge help. I'm feeling fresh I guess, but want to feel energized enough to get back to my training, its too close to October!

Wilson On The Drums · · Woodbury, MN · Joined Dec 2010 · Points: 940

when did you get checked for diabetes and if it's not too upfront, why? have you been losing weight or urinating more frequently?

Scott Ohran · · SLC · Joined Aug 2013 · Points: 0

I was tested for diabetes a year ago. I was going through a phase of feeling really weak and shaky and had an insatiable appetite. I was feeling several symptoms of diabetes - mostly extreme hunger and weight loss (though I just come off 6 weeks on the road and was pretty light), and a lack of concentration and focus. I just felt a bit dingy.

My mother often gets the same feelings I do, of being "hangry" and "shaky low", so she insisted that I finally go get checked out. She is not diabetic, but I know she has always had problems controlling her blood sugar.

I was also tested for anemia then and didn't have either, thankfully. Eventually the feelings subsided and I didn't pursue more medical help. I just chalked it up to being worn out from climbing and life on the road. I really don't know what could be causing these symptoms, I doubt I have a mineral deficiency. Maybe hypo-/hyper-glycemia? Which I know very little about.

Monomaniac · · Morrison, CO · Joined Oct 2006 · Points: 17,295

Well, I think we can close the book on the overtraining theory :)

I'd suggest seeing a doctor, perhaps a specialist, if that's an option for you.

jhammer03 · · Manassas · Joined Jul 2012 · Points: 45

+1 on seeing a doctor.

But, don't rule out improving your diet. Just because you eat a lot, doesn't mean that your body is getting the nutrition it needs. It's not just about calories either, and as a matter of fact, watching calories can get you into trouble. Just focus on "sticking close to the source". The more processed any food is, the less nutritional value it's going to have.

Also, fwiw, I don't think that much protein is necessary. I used to load the protein (having a power-lifting background), but I've found that anywhere from 50-80 grams of naturally sourced protein is just fine for me; i.e. I haven't lost any strength, and my recovery times are still the same. It's just about timing really. (I'm about 140, btw)

Take a week or two off, maybe see a Doc., and focus on eating fresher then see how you feel...

GL

Joe

slim · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2004 · Points: 1,103

quick question, have you been generally doing the same type of workout (long power sessions) for all 7 weeks?

interesting about the hungry all the time thing. i go through phases like that, where i don't get full. i just run out of food, run out of time, or my teeth get tired of chewing.

highaltitudeflatulentexpulsion · · Colorado · Joined Oct 2012 · Points: 35

I hope this isn't the case with you, but that is how I was for years before I got diagnosed with dermatamyositis.

Basically, I'd feel great and strong most of the time. Then I'd be weak as a baby for a few days, we'd all laugh that I forgot how to climb, and I'd be better soon. It was normal because I was always like that.

By 34, it had gotten to the point that I was always weak and rarely strong. My metabolism went way up and I even though I ate a ton, I lost weight.

You mentioned your skin. Are you itchy, no necesarily skin rashes but do you have frequent itches. Does hot water make your hands and feet itch like crazy? How about the condition of your hands? Is the skin thicker and more cracked than most of your other climber peers? Do you get reynauds?

I'm not saying that this is what you have. It is worth looking at though. The inflammation I was constantly living with did permanent damage to my lungs before we figured out what it was. It'd have been awfully nice to get it under control years sooner.

Mention myositis to you doc, see if he's willing to test your CK levels.

Phillip Morris · · Flavor Country · Joined Aug 2002 · Points: 20

The following is complete speculation and I'm not a doctor or nutritionist.

But given your symptoms and diet you might want to have your b12 levels checked. Beans and lentils are a good source of protein and other minerals but they don't provide any B12. You need meat, dairy, or eggs for that. Unless you are eating a ton of eggs every day you might be deficient.

mac345 · · Reno, Nv · Joined Jun 2011 · Points: 0

hey man it sounds like you are not getting enough fats in your diet. Try using coconut oil in your cooking, like with your eggs, etc. also there is a podcast you could listen too (its for crossfiters) but it is about eating for performance and how to change a clean food diet so as to provide a person enough energy to sustain their physical performance, go to barbellshrugged.com and look at episode 54. I know its "meathead" for everyone here but training is training, and it seems you are eating a mostly paleo diet from what you explain above.

now here comes the crossfit is stupid comments

Mark Lewis · · Salt Lake City, Utah · Joined Mar 2012 · Points: 260

Watch out for those crazy tape worms!

Scott Ohran · · SLC · Joined Aug 2013 · Points: 0

I think I'm coming to the conclusion that I might be a bit Iron deficient. I have a lot of the symptoms, it explains the elevated heart rate I'm experiencing, and kind of explains why every little cut I get on my hands on the rock leaves purple scars that take a while to go away. I think it explains that "deflated" feeling I've been having, also.

To remedy this I bought an Iron supplement that I'll eat with an orange or something (for the vitamin C), and even ate some red meat in the form of a roastbeef sandwich from Whole Foods. First time I've had beef in like 2 years! I think I will add a little meat to my diet from here out and eventually take the supplements out.

@slim, I've only been doing the power sessions for about 2 weeks now. Before that was strength training and rocking the thousand yard stare a lot. I know exactly what you're talking about, though. Sometimes I literally eat all day and never really feel full. I think it's my body telling me I need something other than the calories and other macro-nutrients. I don't feel a belly-rumbling sort of hunger, but more of a really hollow hungry feeling in the back of my throat that's craving something. Is your diet similar to the one I posted above? Do you eat meat? If not, try and eat some and tell me what you think. I'm going to experiment with this and see what I come up with. Also, I think some of it just comes from demanding a lot from my body all the time. Sometimes I chill out and take it easy and my appetite chills out a little bit too.

Ryan Strickland · · Idyllwild, CA · Joined Oct 2010 · Points: 127
youtube.com/watch?v=SmmQ7Vk…

Skip to 0:44. My link was supposed to do that, but it's not working.
Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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