Overtraining?

[Notsofast]

Hi
I have been rowing now for about 4 months. Recently I have been feeling fatigued so I have cut my 3 sessions a week down to 1 day row 2 days off. When I do row I do 8-10km SS and have keep my HR to 120 and cut out interval sessions. I have been doing this for the last 3 weeks but still feel fatigued and my resting HR has gone from 44ish to 50. Is it possible that I have overtrained and am still feeling the effects or is it more likely to be something else? Thanks for any ideas.

[JaapvanE]

To be honest, it is pretty hard to tell based on the info you give as it misses critical info like other sports you practiced or stuff you do aside rowing.

My advice is, seek advice from a medical professional as they can look much broader then just your training regime.

[btlifter]

Hi
I have been rowing now for about 4 months. Recently I have been feeling fatigued so I have cut my 3 sessions a week down to 1 day row 2 days off. When I do row I do 8-10km SS and have keep my HR to 120 and cut out interval sessions. I have been doing this for the last 3 weeks but still feel fatigued and my resting HR has gone from 44ish to 50. Is it possible that I have overtrained and am still feeling the effects or is it more likely to be something else? Thanks for any ideas.

No.

[Sakly]

Hi
I have been rowing now for about 4 months. Recently I have been feeling fatigued so I have cut my 3 sessions a week down to 1 day row 2 days off. When I do row I do 8-10km SS and have keep my HR to 120 and cut out interval sessions. I have been doing this for the last 3 weeks but still feel fatigued and my resting HR has gone from 44ish to 50. Is it possible that I have overtrained and am still feeling the effects or is it more likely to be something else? Thanks for any ideas.

No.

+1

3 sessions a week going for 10k can never ever lead to overtraining. This is way too less volume and intensity.

[johnlvs2run]

You're hardly doing anything, so you're more likely tired due to not training hard enough and lack of consistency.

[JaapvanE]

3 sessions a week going for 10k can never ever lead to overtraining. This is way too less volume and intensity.

I'm not so certain about that to be honest. HR isn't a perfect indicator for some types of physical overloading that can occur in starting rowers, especially when they are older and lack a sporting background. Not everybody starts his fitness in perfect form. Then 30K a week might prove too much too soon. Especially on muscles and joints, the stress can exceed what the body is used too, especially when technique isn't perfect yet.

What worries me is that introducing 72 hour rest intervals isn't reducing it.

What damper setting is used?

[Sakly]

3 sessions a week going for 10k can never ever lead to overtraining. This is way too less volume and intensity.

I'm not so certain about that to be honest. HR isn't a perfect indicator for some types of physical overloading that can occur in starting rowers, especially when they are older and lack a sporting background. Not everybody starts his fitness in perfect form. Then 30K a week might prove too much too soon. Especially on muscles and joints, the stress can exceed what the body is used too, especially when technique isn't perfect yet.

You are right about starting point, but 3 sessions per week even with higher intensity is not enough for overloading the system. Sure, muscles and tendons need time, but they start aching when overloaded, you won't get symptoms of overtraining like constant fatigue, bad sleep etc.
Example I go through the last 2 weeks: had a filling in wisdom tooth and since then toothache, has to be removed now. Already a week before the filling, my RHR was raised from typical 42-44 to ~50. Based on my performance this is clearly not a sign of overtraining, as I could set some good marker during that time.
It's only a "study with sample size n=1", but it only shows there are plenty reasons for RHR increase.

[JaapvanE]

You are right about starting point, but 3 sessions per week even with higher intensity is not enough for overloading the system. Sure, muscles and tendons need time, but they start aching when overloaded, you won't get symptoms of overtraining like constant fatigue, bad sleep etc.

The thing is that fatigue can mean different things to different people. It can be a muscle fatigue as well (OP did not specify what he meant). And from my own experience, training regularly on a too high drag with a imperfect technique (breaking arms way too early) can lead to a near chronic joint/muscle fatigue. Overloading tendons and muscles like this can easily be done while staying in a HR Zone. In my case it took a month of light training to get rid of it. But without further info from the OP we are only guessing.

[Sakly]

You are right about starting point, but 3 sessions per week even with higher intensity is not enough for overloading the system. Sure, muscles and tendons need time, but they start aching when overloaded, you won't get symptoms of overtraining like constant fatigue, bad sleep etc.

The thing is that fatigue can mean different things to different people. It can be a muscle fatigue as well (OP did not specify what he meant). And from my own experience, training regularly on a too high drag with a imperfect technique (breaking arms way too early) can lead to a near chronic joint/muscle fatigue. Overloading tendons and muscles like this can easily be done while staying in a HR Zone. In my case it took a month of light training to get rid of it. But without further info from the OP we are only guessing.

Yes, as I said. But this is not overtraining, this is local overload and feeling different. And furthermore it will prevent to hold or even increase the intensity of the sessions, as it hurts, so it is very unlikely that such a state contributes to overtraining at all.

[Notsofast]

Sorry I should have given more details. I used to do regular exercise, running, weights etc with a running 10k time of 33 mins. However I haven't trained properly for 10 years or so and gained 10 kg. I started rowing with the BPP and have enjoyed it . I use a DF of around 110.
Now I have that tired feeling every day, not physical tiredness bur a general feeling of malaise with a raised RHR but no local joint pain. I have a relatively sendentary lifestyle except for the rowing which I look forward to doing.

[Yankeerunner]

Sometimes the problem is under-resting rather than overtraining. Getting consistent proper sleep and proper nutrition is a big help in adapting to a training load.

It might also be a good idea to jolt the program with varied workouts. As a 33' 10K runner you probably are familiar with a regimen of one long run, one anaerobic threshold, and one short interval session each week. From your current 8-10K at a time you might gradually add 500m/week to one workout at a slower pace than what you do now, try to speed up the 8-10K by 1 sec/500m once a week, and resume the interval session once a week. The variety might help.

[iain]

RHR is affected by many factors, mine increases by 10+BPM when highly stressed at work (almost certainly partly due to decreased duration and quality of sleep). Also, don't underestimate the mental impact. My HR during SS rises 4-5BPM at the end of each interval as I try to hit my target precisely and my %HRR rises from 15% to 50% when comparing HR before a light SS and a really hard challenge, so if you are worried about your HR it will increase.

There is also the possibility that you are fighting off an illness. We all see unexplained RHR variations, personally I wouldn't let it worry you. The other possibility is that 120 is just too low and you may actually be losing fitness. can you readily maintain a higher pace while still able to talk? If so, if that is all you are doing for exercise, I recommend that you go faster.

[ericMX73]

I get this fatigue feeling also from time to time when I don’t get enough sleep at night. I’ve started taking mid day naps for about 45 minutes. Also, lack of hydration or electrolytes can hurt. I’ve heard that if you have a low sodium diet and drink a lot of filtered tap water that can reduce your electrolytes. Plus make sure you eat enough potassium rich foods. Basically monitor your nutrition and sleep. Hope this helps.

[jcross485]

Hi
I have been rowing now for about 4 months. Recently I have been feeling fatigued so I have cut my 3 sessions a week down to 1 day row 2 days off. When I do row I do 8-10km SS and have keep my HR to 120 and cut out interval sessions. I have been doing this for the last 3 weeks but still feel fatigued and my resting HR has gone from 44ish to 50. Is it possible that I have overtrained and am still feeling the effects or is it more likely to be something else? Thanks for any ideas.

Sorry I should have given more details. I used to do regular exercise, running, weights etc with a running 10k time of 33 mins. However I haven't trained properly for 10 years or so and gained 10 kg. I started rowing with the BPP and have enjoyed it . I use a DF of around 110.
Now I have that tired feeling every day, not physical tiredness bur a general feeling of malaise with a raised RHR but no local joint pain. I have a relatively sendentary lifestyle except for the rowing which I look forward to doing.

Based on both posts and your general background, assuming the 10k in 33:00 is accurate, overtraining is unlikely to be the issue, even with a 10 year layoff. A 33 min 10k is no joke and anyone who has been able to train to achieve something like this should not be overtraining from 3 x 10k lower HR steady state sessions on the erg.

I would recommend contacting your medical provider/professional and getting comprehensive blood work done because my gut reaction is there is something else going on under the hood so to speak.

Disclaimer - I am not a doctor but I did sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

[jamesg]

8-10km SS and have keep my HR to 120

Let it go higher so that the endorphines can kick in. Do you use ergdata and/or WODs?