OVERTRAINING

Does this term ring a bell in athlete's head? I sure hope it does because athlete's have to be careful with this matter all the time. In order for an athlete be successful he/she has to train as hard as he/she can. You know the old addage, "No pain; no gain"? We all know and many athletes believe it. However, pain can be a bad thing. Imagine that! I'm not saying sore muscle are bad and being a little tight is bad cause its not. You do have to be careful of pains that are causing setbacks and performance drops. Knee pains, backs pains, and shoulder pain is common. There are ways to fix this.

First, one needs to make sure they are lifting with proper form. Improper form can lead to many different pains. For good lifting form, http://www.defrancostraining.com/ and http://www.elitefts.com/ are great resources. Also make sure you are warming up properly. Improper warm-up methods can affect performance, and if muscles are not ready for their task, they can become damaged. Joints can also be affected. For proper warm-up check out http://www.dieselcrew.com/ and http://www.ampedwarmup.com/. Joe Defranco and Jim Smith both have warm-ups and stretching techniques on youtube.

Finally, if your pain is not stopping. Stop what you're doing. Continuing to lift and train can only harm you more. I've learned this the hard way. I recently got diagnosed with a bulging disk due to overtraining. If pain continues stop and go see a doctor. Listen to your body. It's only trying to help. Don't put it under unnecessary stress. Learn from my mistake. DON'T OVERTRAIN!!!!!!