8 negative consequences of excess physical exercise
Physical exercise is one of the activities that best feel our body and our physical and mental wellbeing, and that's why sports practice brings many benefits. Experts recommend performing moderate physical activity at least 3 times per week; otherwise, we run the risk of suffering a sedentary lifestyle and other problems.
But nevertheless, too much physical exercise can also have negative consequences for a person and for his health.
Negative consequences of excess physical exercise
Controlled physical activity can increase our happiness, improve the health of our heart, help us to have a slender body, reduce stress and many other benefits, as you can see in the article: "The 10 psychological benefits of practicing physical exercise"
But what happens when we train excessively? What consequences does it have for our body and our mind? Next we will see it.
1. Vigorexia
One of the pathological conditions that are associated with physical training and, especially, weight training, is vigorexia. This condition is a type of body dysmorphic disorder in which the person looks less muscled than he is and obsesses about having a gym body (ie, muscled).
The origin of the vigorexia is found in the culture of the image in which we live immersed. The media continuously send us advertising messages about the perfect body, often in an unrealistic way. The obsession with diet and physical exercise can lead a person to suffer vigorexia, and vigorexia can lead an individual to become obsessed with physical exercise.
- Related article: "Vigorexia: causes, symptoms and treatment"
2. Runnorexia
Running has become very fashionable in recent years, and although running is one of the healthiest activities for our body and our mind, in excess, it can also cause serious problems for the person who exceeds. And is that anything taken to the extreme can have negative consequences for our body, and running is no exception.
The runnorexia may appear because the person suffers from low self-esteem and, as a consequence, seeks to fill the void that he feels with the excess of training. Evidently, cultural factors also influence, and the fact that running is in fashion, has also caused an increase in cases of people with runnorexia.
In extreme cases, people with runnorexia can see how their quality of life decreases and they can even stop staying with their friends or their partner. If you want to know more about this disorder, you can read this article: "Runnorexia: the modern addiction to running"
3. Rhabdomyolysis
Rhabdomyolysis is a condition that It is characterized by the alteration of muscle cells that cause alterations for the organism and can end up putting in risk the life of a person. Its cause can be hereditary, although excessive and intense physical training can also cause its development. Therefore, to prevent this alteration, it is advisable to perform controlled physical exercises and in appropriate conditions.
4. Injuries
Injuries are frequent in athletes, whether of muscular or joint type, and, occasionally, they occur without excess exercise being present. However, when we train excessively and do not rest enough we are more prone to suffer injuries. Sometimes it is because of the overload of training and sometimes because of the mental fatigue that occurs, which causes us to have an incorrect technique.
5. Aging
Practicing sports in a moderate way can help us feel young and healthy, not only on a physical level, but also psychological and mental. However, the excessive effort accelerates joint wear .
6. Overtraining syndrome
The overtraining syndrome is comparable to the burnout syndrome that occurs in companies. This phenomenon, which also receives the name of stalenessIt can lead the person to have serious health problems and affect their day to day.
When we talk about overtraining, we must distinguish the physical overtraining, which can cause problems, for example, of muscular type, of mental overtraining, which is much more complex or and that produces the following symptoms: feeling of fatigue, insomnia, depression, loss of vigor, etc. Excessive exercise and lack of recovery influence when developing this disorder.
- If you want to know more: "Overtraining syndrome: athletes burned"
7. Heart problems
While moderate physical exercise is good for the cardiovascular system, and even intense training when done properly, too much exercise can cause an increase in circulatory and cardiac problems .
According to an investigation by Heart magazine, practicing a lot of sports can be counterproductive to the heart, especially in those over 30 years of age who train intensely more than five hours a week. The data conclude that 19% of the population are more prone to develop some heart disease such as atrial fibrillation When you reach 60 years old.
8. Descent of the immune system
The immune system is also impaired with excess physical exercise, especially because the body does not rest enough. This causes different problems for the organism, because it does not recover properly as should do in a rest period . The weak immune system manifests with more colds, fever, headaches and more serious diseases.
