Hi guys, Kris from Custom Fitness here, your Amarillo personal trainer. Today we’re going to be wrapping up the two part series on exercise: is it a habit, or is it an addiction? Now be sure to read part one if you haven’t already at the link here: And as always, if you have any questions about today’s blog then please give us a call at (806)-322-3188
Welcome back to this two parter. Last time I might have shocked you with the news: working out all of the time isn’t good. I know, it’s a hard reality to accept. We think that the people that are constantly at the gym are the ones that we should aspire to be like. And there is a lot of merit in being consistent with an exercise plan, but there is a point where it can get obsessive. You need time to heal, and you also have a life outside of the gym. So today I’m going to be wrapping this series up with letting you know what an exercise addiction actually looks like. And I am going to be talking more about overtraining.
So with addiction, I think we all know that addiction is bad. We hear that word and immediately know that whatever it is being associated with can’t be good. But what addiction shows us is that we have a mental connection that is really unhealthy, and that can go with exercise. On the other side, a habit is something that makes us feel good when we do it. When we go in for our habit and are able to give our body the time to rest, then it will give that feeling of almost a high. As you’re going in to workout you’ll get that endorphin release, you feel great, and it’s like that runner’s high. It’s where you feel great when you are doing it, but then after you also feel great. You aren’t broken down, you’re in great health, and the body is actually moving forward rather than backwards.
Now with the addiction, with the overtraining, what people don’t realize is that one of the biggest side effects of that is actually working backwards from your goals. So if your goal is to build muscle, whether that is muscle tone or bulk, and possibly weight loss, the body will actually start to store more fat and burn more muscle. If you do that then you are going to end up like my runner friend. She had no muscle tone whatsoever, and she looked very ill. She had sunken cheeks, sunken skin, she looked like skin and bone, and she felt terrible. She would go out and run those twenty mile runs everyday, but she would be sick about every other week. And she would still run when she was sick. People think that they just need to keep going whenever they are ill, but that’s another thing.
So when you are sick you need to give your body time to heal. If you workout while you are sick, what happens is that you actually lower your immune system during exercise. Now you definitely don’t want to do that, you don’t want to cause your sickness to become worse. When you keep working out when you are sick what that does is either make that sickness stick around for longer, or it can even make it much, much worse. So you definitely want to take some time off if you are ill.
As for those people that are constantly pushing and doing, like I said, they are using their muscle at that point for fuel and their body will start to store fat. The body will do that because it thinks that it’s in some sort of odd place where you don’t have the right kind of food and the rest that you need. So you have to get all of those things in play. It is a lot of things to put together, but it is definitely doable.
I know that it can be a lot of information to try and piece together, but that’s why I’m here. I hope that I was able to help you make sense of the dangers of overdoing it.
I know that it is tempting to try and go all out and never let yourself rest, and that can be with anything in life, but you have to remember to take care of yourself. And when people get addicted to exercise, they aren’t only hurting their bodies, but they are hurting their mental and emotional health. Remember to not be too hard on yourself and feel like you have that need to go to the gym. We all have our mess ups and no one can maintain perfection.
I’ve been a personal trainer in Amarillo for over sixteen years, and I can tell you that when you are working out and dieting like crazy and you can’t find any joy in it and you don’t take care of yourself, then you aren’t going to achieve the goals that you want to achieve. So be kind to yourself, and keep your workouts consistent, not crazy.
So that is going to wrap up our two part series on exercise: is it a habit or an addiction? I hope that you all got something good out of this series.
So, if you are wanting the accountability and help with creating an action plan to see results, or are wanting to someone to help create a workout plan to push you to your greatest potential, then that’s what we’re here for. We work with our clients not just on fitness, but also nutrition. We will ensure that you are supported throughout every aspect of your health and wellness journey, and that includes making those eating changes. We have an entire team of dedicated professionals to help you with your health and fitness goals. To get your consultation set up, give us a call at 806-322-3188 or email us at info@customfitness.biz At Custom Fitness, we are YOUR personal trainers in Amarillo, Texas. Have a great day.