Too Much Exercise?

With so many people trying to lose a few pounds or get "healthier", how could it be possible to have too much exercise?

Well, that's exactly it. With so many people trying to lose weight or "get healthier" or "more fit", exercise is pushed like crazy. Not only that, but doing cardio, a lot of cardio, is emphasized for weight loss. Is this really healthy?

First of all you should consider why you're doing what you're doing. I encourage you to choose a form of exercise you enjoy. That will also make it easier for you to keep doing it. Do you really want to do something you hate for the rest of your life???

Secondly, be sure the amount of exercise you're doing is healthy. Our bodies need time to rest and recover. If you overexert your body you can experience:

  • increase in cortisol (stress hormone)
  • fatigue
  • hormonal imbalances
  • psychological effects (depression, inability to concentrate, irritability, etc.)
  • dehydration 
  • worse performance in your exercise 
If that's not enough to convince you to allow yourself time to rest, consider this: If your goal is weight loss (or just to have a healthy body and metabolism), excessive cardio will not help in the long term. As you continue to do cardio, your body adapts (thus why cardio athletes have lower heart rates), and it becomes more efficient. This means it needs less calories (units of energy) to perform the cardio activity i.e. it doesn't burn as much. 

I am by no means saying not to do cardio. I personally run several times a week. I love the endorphin rush and nothing clears my head better than a nice run outside. I also like to feel strong so I incorporate some resistance training. I also incorporate easy yoga stretching to keep my body feeling good. However, I also include rest days. I don't "Grind every day". If you exercise because you love your body, you will respect it and treat it right. Pursue REAL health and love your body. 

*If you struggle with overexercise due to a mental disorder, I encourage you to seek professional help. You are not alone and you can conquer this. 


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