Guilty of running overtraining?

Have you noticed that you have to drag yourself out for a run; and when you do, your muscles feel heavy, your times are deteriorating and overall, you really couldn't be bothered? Has this happened on several consecutive occasions? You could be suffering from ‘overtraining syndrome’.

There are still large gaps in our knowledge and understanding of overtraining syndrome, for which there are many possible underlying causes and also numerous symptoms. Unfortunately, there is no specific test to make the diagnosis and it is easily missed.

The first thing you may notice is that your performance deteriorates and you're feeling constantly tired. Unfortunately these are often late signs. You may feel low in mood or anxious, and your sleep could be disturbed. Your appetite may be poor and sex drive, or libido, reduced.

If you are somebody who checks your resting pulse, you are likely to pick it up earlier as your resting heart rate tends to rise relatively early on. Your heart rate can also take longer to return to normal after running exercise. These symptoms often follow a period of high intensity training with inadequate rest, or other life stresses; for example, problems at work.

In order to fulfil the criteria for overtraining syndrome, the above symptoms need to be present for at least two weeks, despite adequate rest, and with no identifiable medical cause (see below).

• Often a short period of rest is taken from running (several days or a week), but this is inadequate and symptoms return on resuming run training.
• A cold or other viral illness may accompany each premature return to running training.
• Running njuries are reported more frequently.

Unfortunately, as runners, we frequently increase our training to compensate for poor performances; with overtraining syndrome, this just compounds the problem. It is important that medical causes are excluded and you should always visit your doctor if you develop symptoms of overtraining syndrome. Your doctor will ask you some questions and examine you, and may arrange some simple tests; including blood tests to check for anaemia, certain viruses or thyroid problems.

Muscle enzymes might be high (although normal heavy training can cause this), and our natural stress hormone cortisol will also be raised. Female runners may have associated problems with their periods which can stop altogether in conjunction with heavy training.

As some of the symptoms of overtraining syndrome are in common with other illnesses such as clinical depression and post-viral or chronic fatigue syndrome, your doctor would probably appreciate information from yourself suggesting overtraining as a possible diagnosis. A specialist in sports medicine or a running psychologist might use a specific mood questionnaire to help determine the diagnosis.

So how can runners prevent developing overtraining syndrome?
Certainly, an awareness that the syndrome exists is important. Regularly checking your resting pulse/heart rate may help as this tends to show a rise earlier, before you might see deterioration in your running performance.

Appropriate training is a key factor; intense training sessions should be followed by adequate rest from running so that the body can adapt and ‘supercompensate’. If adequate rest is not taken following such intense run training, the body fails to adapt and starts to ‘break down’, so avoid monotonous, repetitive training.

Keep well hydrated and ensure that your diet includes sufficient carbohydrate to maintain glycogen levels as this will allow the body to respond better to heavy training.

There is debate about whether overtraining leads to infections such as colds, or whether infections lead to overtraining syndrome: it’s possibly a bit of both. There is some evidence to show that plasma glutamine, an amino acid, is important to help maintain our immune function during heavy running training.

Finally, if you have been diagnosed with overtraining syndrome, what can you do about it? Resting for three to five weeks is recommended, followed by a gradual build-up return to training (possibly taking up to three months). It is important that competition is avoided during this time. Gentle, non-competitive participation in other sports can help speed up a runner's recovery.

In addition, relaxation, optimising nutrition and addressing other life stresses all have a part to play in aiding recovery from the overtraining syndrome and getting you back to top running form.