Don't Burn Out From Excessive Exercise
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Participating in sport or physical activity should be fun, a chance to improve your skills, develop friendships and to increase your fitness. Although, many people push themselves too hard too fast, and do not take adequate rest breaks. This is often a recipe for burn-out.
It is important to remember that pushing your body past its limits can cause it to break down. If you don’t allow your body sufficient time to rest and recover you may not be receiving the total benefits of your physical activity.
The most common symptom of ‘burn-out’ is fatigue, feeling tired both during physical activity and during rest. Other symptoms include moodiness, irritability, a decrease in appetite, and an increased susceptibility to injury.
It is important that the factors that have lead to the ‘burn-out’ be identified and corrected. Good planning of physical activity decreases the likelihood of injury or ‘burn-out’ occurring and ensures the activity remains enjoyable.
When planning your physical activity consider these safety tips:
• Warm up and cool down before and after the activity.
• Include fluid intake before, during and after activity to prevent dehydration.
• Take short breaks along the way if participating in physical activity for long periods of time.
• Ensure you have adequate recovery to suit your program.
• Set short term goals and gradually build to your ultimate goal. Ensure well-balanced, gradual increases in physical
activity. Do not push your body beyond its capabilities.
• Alternate your physical activity routine. Avoid monotony by varying your activity. For example, riding one day and
swimming the next.
• Obtain advice from an exercise science professional, particularly if you’re exercising at a high-performance
workload.
• If you are exercising at a high-performance workload, alternate between high intensity and low intensity exercises.
• Keep an exercise log. Monitor your progress by keeping track of the intensity and distance of the activity, and also
the length of the resting period.
• If you are injured do not return to physical activity until you have consulted with your sports medicine professional.
Injury treatment by a suitable sports medicine professional will ensure you return to your physical activity swiftly and safely.
For more information on staying safe and injury free through sport and physical activity visit the Resource section for informative brochures and fact sheets.
For further advice on how to prevent running injuries, download a copy of the Smartplay Preventing Running Injuries Fact Sheet at www.smartplay.com.au or contact Smartplay on phone 03 9674 8777 or email smartplay@vic.sma.org.au
