Are you a person that never takes a day off from exercising?
Research has proven that this is harmful.
Maybe you overdo it because you’ve worked so hard to achieve the amazing cam body you have. In fear of going back to the way you were, you refuse to cut yourself some slack and give yourself a day off.
Or maybe you do this to yourself because you see only the flaws in your figure.
Even though you look great you obsess over the centimeter of “flab” that’s hanging over your jeans, the three dimples of cellulite that nearly every female has, or the minute bit of pudge on the back of your arm that has you avoiding tank tops.
And then there’s those of you who overtrain because you really do need to lose some weight.
You’ve put your nose to the grindstone and haven’t allowed yourself a day off in months… yet the scale doesn’t budge. You feel like you’re Sisyphus pushing a rock up a hill every day that just rolls back down – but you won’t stop the insanity even though the more you engage in this behavior the less results you get.
If any of these sound like you, you need to stop overdoing it.
A big part of the equation in being kinder to yourself is body acceptance, however in this piece I’m going to concentrate on the physical vs. mental aspect of how to stop killing yourself with exercise.
That starts with understanding the harm you’re doing to yourself when you refuse to take a break:
- Injury – If you’re balking at taking a day off from the gym know that sooner or later your body will make you stop – you’ll pull your hamstring or rip your Achilles or dislocate a shoulder. Instead of being out for a day or two of rest you’ll be out for a few weeks or months. Don’t get to that point.
- Monotony – There’s a reason people say, “variety is the spice of life,” or “everything in moderation.” If you exercise nonstop, boredom and depression will set in, and you’ll dread it. It’s like having vanilla ice cream every single day for months on end – eventually you’ll hate it. You want to enjoy working out because that will give you results and keep you happy.
- Weight Gain – ELO shares that never taking a break from exercising can cause fatigue and sleep problems which lead to hormonal and body imbalances that disrupt your ability to lose weight. Your stress levels can also rise and that elevates cortisol – a hormone which is known to make you pack on the pounds. Another nasty by-product of overtraining is inflammation and swelling.
So do yourself a favor and stop overexercising, your body and mind will thank you!
Schedule at least two days a week to chill out – a light walk, stretching, a nice swim – you can still move your body, just don’t go at it so hard all the time.
Main photo credit: iStock.com/TeroVesalainen
First photo credit: iStock.com/aldarinho
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Alyssa Collins hails from Minnesota, where snowy days were the perfect excuse to stay warm inside and write. Over the years, she turned that joy into a career and has authored numerous articles for various publications (under pen names). Email Alyssa via alyssa@ynot.com.
