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We’re told the way to a cover model body is to follow a low-fat diet and get plenty of exercise. We already know that the first part of that equation is complete crap but could we possibly be exercising too much?
Most research shows that while moderate exercise is important for combating disease and promoting wellness, too much exercise reduces these benefits and sometimes reverses them all together.
So why does this happen you ask? One word: stress! Many people associate this devilish word with a deadline at work or financial difficulties at home not realizing that the actual definition of the word is: “a physical, chemical or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension and may be a factor in disease causation (merriam-webster.com).”
Most of us don’t realize that stress is not only emotional but also physical such as over working out! This being said, many stressors be they physical, chemical or emotional have similar effects on the body. These stressors place our bodies into what many refer to as “fight or flight” mode. This is also referred to as a sympathetic state. This bodily response in meant to prepare the body to fight off an injury or flight from a predator. Think of an adrenaline response after an injury, a lot of times the pain is not instantaneous because our body is trying to protect itself. This fight or flight mode is not meant to be a constant state of living. In fact, most bodily functions, including one of the most important: digestion, operate at optimal function in a parasympathetic state.
This being said when one workouts, especially in terms of high intensity training (think CrossFit or marathon runners) we are putting our bodies through an increased amount of stress. This rush also induces the release of a hormone called cortisol. By not allowing our bodies adequate recovery time our bodies begin to stay in a chronic stress mode (or sympathetic state) and in turn cortisol levels are then steadily elevated.
As we learned above when our bodies remain in a sympathetic state functions such as digestion do not run optimally. Therefore, we are not absorbing and/or using nutrients we are consuming properly not to mention this weakening your immune system.
Increased levels of cortisol throughout the body not only can lead to unstable energy levels throughout the day and/or difficulties sleeping but also that dreaded belly fat! Fat stored around the abdominal area has regularly been linked to hormone deregulation (i.e. cortisol). (Click here to read my post about cortisol.)
Here are some things to think about when reflecting on your weekly exercise routines:
- Less is more! – Not seeing the results you want to see from your frequent 2-a-day sessions? Is your 3-on/1-off schedule not providing the results you thought it would? Cut back! This doesn’t mean you have to skip the gym completely, maybe focus on stretching or simply don’t go balls to the wall every single workout!
- Sleep! – Sleep is the time when the body recovers and regulates itself. This is one of the most important times in our day! Sleep is and will always be more important than dragging your ass out of bed on 5 hours sleep to do a WOD or run 6 miles!
- Eat more Carbs – Many of, especially those of us that are Paleo, don’t eat to support their physical exertion. For a list of Paleo friendly carb sources check out this list from Balanced Bites.
So what does this mean for all you CrossFit addicts and chronic cardioers out there? By all means I am not recommending giving up something you enjoy (I certainly am not ditching my box anytime soon). However, if you are looking to truly improve your health or looking to drop body weight but are not seeing the results you want to see despite putting in what you feel is adequate effort, you may want to examine your workout routine!
Here are some great articles I found that can provide you with some further reading on this topic! Mark Sisson of Mark’s Daily Apple recommends expending no more than 4,000 a week from exercise in this article. In another article Chris Kresser explains ‘Why You May Need to Exercise Less’.
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