Exercise is one of the best ways to keep your body in shape, but there's a limit to everything. If done intensely, it can lead to overtraining.
Overtraining is a common problem these days amongst beginners; if overlooked, it can later affect a person's health. Some athletes go overboard with training, such as working out for straight seven days a week. Little do they know they are landing themselves into trouble with an intense workout.
Overtraining exists, and it happens due to a lack of rest needed during and after a workout. It can get so bad that you could end up in a hospital with potential organ damage. That said, there needs to be moderation in terms of training. Intense training can cause fatigue and affect your muscles and joints. If you ever feel such signs, remember that this is your body's way of communicating, and ignoring it means harming yourself.
Other than that, there's a relationship between training and testosterone levels. Testosterone is a sex hormone that raises the sex drive and keeps sufficient sperm count. You must follow a healthy diet and routine to keep your T levels normal.
If you don't have a healthy routine and are involved in intense training, it can decrease your T levels in the body leading to less sperm count. Research supports that a low level of testosterone causes depression and anxiety.
Therefore, it is necessary to make your health a top priority instead of going hard on yourself. According to a study, athletes who underwent intense training decreased their sperm count. In addition to this, they faced reproductive issues due to hormonal imbalance as well.
Related Article: Does Working Out Increase Testosterone?
Signs & Symptoms of Overtraining
Some of the symptoms associated with overtraining causing lower T levels are discussed below. If you sense these symptoms, look at your training routine to figure out where you went wrong.
Fatigue: An intense workout can cause exhaustion and tiredness. Get your testosterone level checked if you feel these signs off and on during a workout. Overtraining can cause you weakness by decreasing your T-levels.
Low Libido: If your sexual desires decrease, it shows reduced testosterone levels. It's an alarming situation that occurs due to overtraining.
Reduced Bone Mass: Testosterone plays an exceptional role in building muscle protein. If you feel weakness in your bones and muscles, it is due to low testosterone levels. All this happens due to excessive workouts.
Weight Gain: It's an alarming situation if you experience sudden weight gain. Normal levels of testosterone maintain muscle and bone mass. The moment fat building starts in your body; it's the time to get your T levels examined.
Hair Loss: Testosterone is a hormone related to male characteristics. Over-training causes its low levels in the body leading to hair loss. If you experience intense hair loss, get your T-levels examination done.
Stress: Did you know what else testosterones are responsible for? They regulate your mood too. So, if you begin to feel depressed and stressed, it is the cause of overtraining that leads to lower T levels.
Infertility: Testosterone is a hormone responsible for sperm production. If you experience less sperm count, it is due to low testosterone levels. According to the study, low T levels cause reproductive issues and i-e, infertility.
Related Article: 12 Mistakes That May Be Hindering Your Progress at the Gym
Does Intense Training Lower Testosterone Level?
Over the years, several types of research have been conducted on the effect of overtraining on the reduction of testosterone levels. Intense workouts such as heavy weight lifting, excessive running, or cycling can badly lower the level of testosterone. In a study, athletes with normal hormonal backgrounds were tested. They went through over-training; later, their testosterone level and sperm count were seen to have reduced.
Similarly, another review supports lowering sperm levels by 50% because of excessive cycling. Due to intense cycling, the testis glands of the cyclists were badly affected. It took them a few days to come back to normal. Besides the effect of overtraining on testosterone, it impacts other body parts too.
A highly reliable study reveals the effect of overtraining on destroying the body's healthy cells. In addition, it increases oxidative stress and cytotoxins levels in the blood, disrupting mood and sleep.
Last but certainly not least, many similar studies show the same results that excessive training disrupts the testosterone level in the body. Further, overtraining causes stress, which prevents the person's body from maintaining normal testosterone levels. You need to rest and sleep well to take your body back to its normal state. You need to give it some time to recover.
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How to Prevent Overtraining & Elevate T Levels?
Most people overtrain to attain an attractive body. But they forget that excessive training will do them no good. However, in no time, they become a victim of overtraining, which causes them weakness in the body. In addition to this, over-training affects the endocrine and nervous systems. If you want to maintain the balance between training and testosterone levels, follow the following steps.
Get Enough Sleep: When you sleep well, you work well. A review suggests a person should sleep at least 9 hours a day since cells need time to recover. The person should get sufficient sleep to work out actively the next day.
Take Supplements: If you are a victim of overtraining, you need to take nutritional supplement i-e, testosterone booster along with healthy food. It helps you combat the loss of vitamins and minerals during the training.
Take Rest Between Workouts: Another thing you can do is rest between the training. You can take two days off after every workout. It will help you fix the mind-body connection, recover the muscles and provide you with energy to work out.
Record Your Progress: You can keep track of your progress. For that, you can take a diary and write down your performance. It will help you evaluate your training and pick out the weak points. Furthermore, doing so will help you be consistent with the workout.
Consume Calories: When you do an intense workout, it deprives your body of various nutrients. To recover from the loss, you must take carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats into the diet.
Reduce the Intensity of Your Workout: You can decrease the number of sets you do per exercise or reduce the weights you lift. It will help you work out without any exhaustion. Lastly, you will also recover from the wear and tear of overtraining.
Get a Massage: Treat your body with a good massage if you're tired and exhausted from overtraining. A soothing massage will help you overcome injuries, release muscle tension and restore balance to the musculoskeletal system.
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Conclusion
There are some mistakes that people make while working out. They think working out more than recommended will help them get fit. When they are involved in intense workouts, they face overtraining. This overtraining causes them several bodily disruptions, such as fatigue, mood swings, weight gain, exhaustion, etc.
While they experience all these signs, impaired T levels are another major impact they face. The level of testosterone begins to decrease, which affects the sperm count. It's why moderation is considered to follow in everything, whether it be a workout or anything else. The excess to everything is bad so is the overtraining of the body.
However, you can cure the damage by following a healthy routine, getting good sleep, and consulting a professional trainer.
Reading List
Article Sources
- Celec, P., OstatnÃková, D., & Hodosy, Jã. (2015). On the effects of testosterone on brain behavioral functions. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2015.00012
- Redman, L. (2006). Reproductive BioMedicine Online; www.rbmonline.com/Article/2179 on web. 12(5), 579–586. https://www.rbmojournal.com/article/S1472-6483(10)61183-2/pdf
- Arce, J. C., & De Souza, M. J. (1993). Exercise and Male Factor Infertility. Sports Medicine, 15(3), 146–169. https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-199315030-00002
- Kreher, J. B., & Schwartz, J. B. (2012). Overtraining Syndrome. Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach, 4(2), 128–138. https://doi.org/10.1177/1941738111434406
- Arce, J. C., & De Souza, M. J. (1993). Exercise and Male Factor Infertility. Sports Medicine, 15(3), 146–169. https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-199315030-00002
- Roberts, A. C., McClure, R. D., Weiner, R. I., & Brooks, G. A. (1993). Overtraining affects male reproductive status*. Fertility and Sterility, 60(4), 686–692. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0015-0282(16)56223-2
- Lucia, A. (2001). Hormone levels of world class cyclists during the Tour of Spain stage race. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 35(6), 424–430. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.35.6.424
- Mackinnon, L. (2000). Overtraining effects on immunity and performance in athletes [Review of Overtraining effects on immunity and performance in athletes].
- Kreher, J. B., & Schwartz, J. B. (2012). Overtraining Syndrome. Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach, 4(2), 128–138. https://doi.org/10.1177/1941738111434406
