Hey Friends,

Happy Sunday!

Last week, I talked about how hard you should push yourself in your workouts to see results without overdoing it.

Exercise intensity is important. How do you find the balance?

This week, I’ll highlight some of the common things that might indicate someone is doing too much.

🧘Find 5 min per day to stretch 🧘

Flexibility is often overlooked in people's fitness routines.

So this week, let’s make a point of doing it.

Here’s a video to guide you if you want:

More is not always better.

It’s common for people in fitness to believe that they have to beat themselves into the ground to see results.

How do you know if you are pushing yourself too much?

Well, for starters, most people aren’t. The vast majority of the population stops when it starts to get difficult/uncomfortable.

But many people overdo it. Here are some signs that might indicate you’re doing more than your body can handle:

If you’ve had an injury that keeps popping up or doesn’t seem to go away, it might be a sign you are overdoing it. Tightness, flare-ups, or small tweaks are often due to overuse injuries.

Depriving the body of recovery or pushing to the extreme increases your chances of these injuries.

Similarly, if you are noticing more soreness after your workouts than usual or if you are staying sore for prolonged periods, it might hint at your exercise intensity.

Constantly feeling tired, sore, or sluggish can be a sign that you are overtraining.

If you are having increased difficulty in falling or staying asleep, it could actually be a result of doing too much.

Even if you feel exhausted, if the body is in a prolonged state of stress from overworking, increased cortisol levels (stress hormone) can disrupt sleep.

The immune system is heavily tied to the body’s ability to recover.

Frequent high-stress training can suppress the immune system. So if you are someone who is constantly getting sick, maybe it’s time to take a look at how much you are doing in your workouts.

If you are not getting stronger in your lifts, or worse, getting weaker, it often means you are doing too much.

How is your body supposed to build new muscle tissue if it’s always exhausted and struggling to recover?

The key takeaway I want you to have from this week is just to pay attention to your body.

Those signs that you aren’t feeling recovered or are constantly tired might mean something.

You don’t need to beat your body into the ground to see results in fitness.

There is a lot of “hustle culture” on social media about fitness, telling people they need to just work harder and do more.

That approach isn’t sustainable, and it isn’t how a fitness routine should feel.

Your health and fitness journey should leave you feeling more energized, not less.

There are a lot of people who are really hard on themselves, thinking that they aren’t doing enough.

I’m here to tell you that you are probably doing awesome in more ways than you give yourself credit for. Stay patient and consistent, and over time, you will see the results you want.

No need to overdo it.

I like how this video talks about exercise volume. In the caption, he has a couple of great options for ways to structure your workouts to get enough volume without overdoing it.

And if you have time, this YouTube video is great:

Have a great week, guys!

Ben