ibis

After breaking up with my girlfriend earlier inthe week, I headed to the gym to blow off some steam.

I actually had one of the best workouts I've ever had. I added about 10 pounds to my max bench press that day.

But four days later I'm still sore. Normally I'm sore for 2 days max.

I have been eating fine, without any change in protien or glyutimine (sp?) intake.

So, my question is - can you workout too hard

rekinom

Post removed.

ibis

Thanks for the responce.

Since my classes were canceled today (Reagan's funeral) I took the oppertunity to sleep in a bit. After I woke up I laid in bed reading an old fitness textbook I had. I got to the part about weight lifting and found this:
Hopefully this might answer simular questions... like anyone ever does a search before posting though...

stevie667

Yes, you're working out far too much.
If your sore after two days, thats too much. Soreness 24-48 hours after exercise indicates muscle tearing, which isn't what you want to do.

If it's only one time though, don't worry, just don't make a habit of it.

nash

I would say that it depends on the person and also what kind of workout is involved. Normally, if there is a change in workout routine, your body will have to deal with something it's not used to, and soreness will usually accompany it. If you do a super intense workout everytime (no more than two times a week, hopefully), it is not unusual to be sore fore several days afterwards. As for "working out too hard," I draw the line when you lose control of bodily functions, that is, when you piss yourself or throw up or something similar. Just take an extra day or two (or more) to rest up.

Just keep in mind that people's bodies vary greatly, and so does their "ideal" workout routine. It also depends greatly on what they are conditioning themselves towards. There are different workouts that you will have in order to train yourself for endurance, strength, and size. The super-duper intense workouts that may cause you to lose control of your body are done by those people who compete in the strongmen competitions.

Actually, another place to draw the line is when you injure yourself. Don't do that.

Spanxxx

The key was that you needed more recovery time. Remember, the more you go at it, and the more weight you start to handle, the more stress you are putting on your body. The idea of heavy resistance training is progession. Each time you workout, you are trying to put a progressively higher load on your muscles. In doing this, you will also need increasingly longer recovery periods.

Now, you might be able to use the same recovery time for months at a time, before needing more. It depends on your progression. However, eat well in your downtime and make sure to put enough time between exercises of the same muscle groups.


However, I will note that yes.. you can do too much in one workout. We've all done it. Likewise, without proper form, you might also pull or twist something by accident which you definitely want to avoid.

Keep pumping. Be safe. Have fun.

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