Am I over working out?

[Anonymous]

Lately I have been feeling kind of weird and tired. I have also been working out a whole lot more than I usually do. I go to the gym every other day now and weightlift for 2 hours with 3 sets on each machine. I also do a HIIT like exercise afterward where I jog at 3.0 on a treadmill for one minute, run at 7.0 for one minute, go back down to 3.0, then up to 7.5 and keep it up until I reach 9.0. I am 17 years old if that makes any difference and my diet is pretty well balanced with 3 meals a day made up of lean protein, carbs, vegtables, and sometimes fruit. I also take multivitamins and extra protien. I'm not sure if I am overworking it though because on the day afterward I don't really feel too sore but I just wanted to check with you all.

[NotJustAnotherGuy]

For the average athlete, what we think is over training is usually due to one of 2 things... Lack of sleep or lack of nutrition.

When you're working out more, you need more sleep and more nutrition. So naturally you'll feel more tired when you up your training.

With that said, some remedies are pre-workout formulas like N.O. Xplode. Post recovery formulas with a few amount of carbs-- like Muscle Milk or Amp Amplified Whey Protein.

If you are already doing those two things, you can take a pre-workout formula AFTER your workout. Or drink a cup of coffee (which is actually good for you).

It is unlikely you are doing too much for your body to handle. Most of what people think is over training is really just under nourishment.

So remember that more work = more sleep and more nourishment needed. So that tiredness could be due to your need to sleep more, or due to low sugar levels (or many other forms of malnutrition).

[Asker]

So basically I need to up my calorie intake so I have more energy? I get plenty of sleep but I have not changed my diet around when I started working out more. I eat a protein clif bar after I workout so I guess that's my energy booster afterward but I don't really eat anything to boost my performance before my workouts.

[NotJustAnotherGuy]

I used N.O. explode about 30 min before working out and then 2 hours of lifting and cardio later still felt energized. I'd recommend that. I haven't personally tried others, but I'm sure other preworkouts will work too. Try that, if that's not enough, shift your calories around. Some sugar after a workout isn't bad, fyi, just to restore your sugar levels to normal after working out. I'm not suggesting eating a bag of chips or a pile of candy bars. Just a small juice box or something like that.

[Damian1234]

Overtraining sux. It fatigues you, lowers your performance, damages your body, bah.

Do you split up your workouts or do full body when you weightlift? You need around 72 hours (3 days) for your muscles to fully recover (though some can do it in 48). Splitting your workouts can ensure your body parts get the rest they need after a workout. For guys splits can be upper body one day, lower the next, rest the next, repeat, or chest and shoulders, arms and back, legs and core, repeat, stuff like that. I think it could work for girls too, though I don't know if you work out the same things the same way (I haven't seen girls in my gym benching but you never know). Cardio is okay every other day, and your diet is good. I would blame it on doing full body exercises every 48 hours. Either split it or rest an extra day.

[Asker]

I usually do full body if I have the time but I get what you mean about splitting it up.

[sweatgirl]

you should never lift 4 more then a hour every other day. make sure you drinking water.

[lucky24]

your body could be exhausted since 2 hours at the gym is a long time to workout even if it is every other day

you have to let the muscles rest for 48 hours before you use it again

so if you did chest one day you might wanna do it again on day 4 rather than day 3

but you can hit other muscles like abs or quads or something instead on day 2 (or 3 if you workout every other day)

[martyfellow]

You probably don't need th extra protein, so leave it out so long as you're eating properly. If you want to build endurance you shuld do longer cardio sessions. But I'm sure you're in great shape!

[Asker]

Yeah I use to do longer cardio but it just got boring so I switched to this. I guess I am going to just switch between long and short though.

[martyfellow]

Best answer, no?

[Asker]

You have a good answer but it's not the best. Sorry, I like to play fair.

[Longshot]

There are lots of answers ranging from yes to no and everything in between. If you are feeling tired, it could be the workouts are too long, you are low on iron, you are burning fat, etc. I get extremely tired from weight loss. You may need to see your doctor.