Avoiding the Overtraining Trap

Overtraining happens more than people admit. It is not just about feeling tired in your legs. It is about your mood and your sleep. More is not always better. You can burn out physically and mentally…low levels of specific hormones and neurotransmitters can leave you feeling flat.

You should monitor your resting heart rate. If it jumps up all of a sudden then you should take a rest day. It is okay to skip a session to allow your body to heal. And another thing is to watch your joints. If your knees feel like they are grinding then you should swap a run for a bike ride. That is not the end of the world.

Here are the things to keep an eye on and measure – if you are able – it will make it fairly straightforward to know when you are overtraining –

1. Physiological metrics to measure

Heart Rate Variability (HRV) very useful

• What it reflects: Autonomic nervous system balance (stress vs recovery)
• Overtraining signal:
  • Sustained drop below your personal baseline (not day-to-day noise)
  • Flattened HRV (little variation across days)
• How to use it properly:
  • Measure daily, same time (ideally morning, supine)
  • Look at 7-day rolling trends, not single days
• Caveat: HRV drops with illness, poor sleep, alcohol, dehydration — context matters

Rule of thumb:

↓ HRV for 3–5+ days + poor performance = red flag

Resting Heart Rate (RHR) simple and reliable

• What it reflects: Cardiovascular stress & recovery state
• Overtraining signal:
  • ↑ 5–10 bpm above baseline for several days
• Best practice:
  • Measure upon waking, before caffeine or movement
• Works especially well when combined with HRV

Heart rate response during training

• Red flags:
  • Higher heart rate than usual at the same workload
  • OR unusually low heart rate despite high effort (parasympathetic overtraining)
• Metric to track:
  • HR vs pace / power drift over time

Sleep metrics (from wearables or self-report)

• Overtraining signal:
  • Reduced deep sleep
  • Frequent awakenings
  • Elevated nighttime heart rate
• Sleep disturbances often precede performance decline

2. Performance-based indicators (VERY important)

Performance plateau or regression

• You’re training harder but:
  • Power/pace decreases
  • RPE increases at the same workload
• This is one of the strongest indicators of overtraining

Delayed recovery

• Persistent soreness >72 hours
• Warm-ups feel unusually difficult
• Multiple “bad sessions” in a row

3. Subjective measures (often overlooked, but critical)

Mood & motivation

• Irritability
• Apathy toward training
• Anxiety or mild depressive symptoms

Perceived exertion

• Normal sessions feel “too hard”
• High RPE at low intensity

Illness & immunity

• Frequent colds
• Slow wound healing

Elite coaches often trust subjective fatigue before metrics fail.

4. Hormonal / clinical markers (advanced, optional)

Mostly used for research or elite athletes:

• Cortisol ↑
• Testosterone ↓ (or T:C ratio ↓)
• CK (creatine kinase) chronically elevated

Not practical for most people unless supervised.

5. The most effective minimal tracking setup

If you want maximum signal with minimal effort, track:

1. HRV (daily, rolling average)
2. Resting Heart Rate
3. Session RPE
4. Performance trend (pace/power at fixed effort)
5. Sleep quality

That combo catches most overtraining cases early.

6. Interpreting the signals together

High-risk pattern

• ↓ HRV (several days)
• ↑ Resting HR
• Worse performance
• Poor sleep or mood

→ Reduce volume/intensity immediately

Functional overreaching (often intentional)

• Short-term HRV drop
• Temporary fatigue
• Performance rebounds after deload

→ Planned recovery restores performance

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I cannot find a sled to push? You can use a heavy plate on a towel or a resistance band. It is not perfect but it works.

Do I need to train six days a week? No four or five days is often enough for most people. Quality matters more than quantity.

Can juniors do this program? Yes but they should use lighter weights and focus on moving well.