Am I pushing it too hard?

E

exercise forever

Cathlete
DH told me today that I had been pushing it too hard in exercising. I argued this with him. I have always worked at this intensity. He complained that I hurt my wrist 3 years ago with tendonitis and now the same thing with my foot. I don't want to accept that I may have to always take it easy. Not in this lifetime! But I wonder what I am doing wrong in exercising if that is the case. He thinks I am doing too much. Well I want to tell him, I have no choice but to take it easy. Is there some truth to what he is saying? Please tell me I can take it.

I want to always be able to do air jacks and run as fast as I want.


Am I getting old?

Sorry if my sentences seem to be scattered in my thoughts


kim
 
Unless you post here what your normal workout schedule is, it's a little tough to determine whether you're pushing it too hard. Two injuries in three years, especially on radically different body parts, doesn't sound like a big deal to me, unless they were incapacitating.

IMHO, DHs are great for telling you you're pushing it too hard (and spending too much time at it, time that could be spent coddling him) . . . while absolutely adoring the results. Personally, I'd rather wear out than rust out; I'd rather risk the odd injury than the aging effects of "taking it easy".

Keep in mind, too, that often it's more important to look at HOW you're doing a workout rather than its relative intensity. If your form is poor you're doing yourself no favors.

JMHO -

A-Jock
 
Hey A-Jock,


I was doing cardio in the mornings and weights in the evening after work. The cardio would consist of LM, KM, all Imax's. Just any of cathes cardio workouts. this I would wake up at 5:00 to do. He said it was probably getting up so early. I say kiss my butt! Now all I can do is weights now because of my foot. I sure do miss her cardios.


kim
 
That doesn't sound too terribly overdoing it to me, at least for cardio, presuming you have at least one complete rest day in there. Also make sure your shoes are up to the impact. I found out the hard way this past spring that using my athletic shoes beyond their sproing-life can lead to some pretty unhappy tootsies, especially in the soft tissues of said tootsies.

Consider hitting the pool for some zero-impact aquatic work to get some cardio in there. But - you knew I'd say that, didn'tcha?

A-Jock
 
I think "too much" is a very individual thing, depending on age, genetic weaknesses, build, etc. Some signs of doing too much (ie: overtraining) are insomnia, aches and pains, irritability, lack of desire to exercise. As for injuries, some of us are sturdier than others, and can take more impact, and some of us can't. You have to find the right balance for you.

If I did your schedule, I would most definitely be doing too much for me. I find that I get better results, with fewer aches and pains and injuries, when I make sure to have a recovery week every 4 weeks or so(something that P90X is wonderful at: working you hard for three weeks, but giving plenty of recovery between workouts, within workouts, and as a special week every 4 weeks). If you ALWAYS workout the way you describe, and never take a break, then I would guess you might be overdoing.

I also think that it's wise to modify workouts as you get older,as necessary: using a lower step, putting more time between higher intensity workouts like the Imax's (which Cathe herself says to not use more than twice a week), taking air jacks to a rebounder or more cushioned surface.

You don't mention how old you are, but no matter what your age, you WON'T always be able to to air jacks and run as fast as you want. That's a fact of life. But that doesn't mean that you are a wimp, or that you are deficient in some way, just mortal. Even professional athletes can't do the same things when they get older as when they were younger. My goal with exercise is to make it a life-long commitment, which doesn't mean I'll always be doing the same type of exercise, but that I will always be doing something. If I have to modify more as I get older, to prevent injury, I will and I do. And I feel better in general.
 
Hey Kathryn,

I am 36 years old. I remember in my 20's when I was doing the Firm, I could do anything and my body took to it fine. I don't consider myself old,I will probably try to go the limit in any exercise.


kim
 
Kim,

Kathryn's thread has some very sage advice in it. I'll be 44 this month and I have rheumatoid arthritis on top of that. I push myself at times and my body pushes back when I am holding onto furniture to walk when I get up first thing in the morning. We not only have to modify as we age, we have to modify according to our own abilities, whether we have a debilitating disease like me or an injury like you. I agree with Kathryn that being there in the long run is much more important than working past the intensity you are able to for the short term. Listen to your body and get better so you can be doing this at 66.
 
I have to agree with Kathryn, intensity is very very personal, and if your starting to develop over stressed or overused problems, it's a sign that your doing too much.

Also another thing to think about, if your trying to burn fat and you do too high of an intensity workout, the higher you go, the less fat you burn and you can actually burn 0 fat with Cathe workouts, depending on your body and genetics. All you're really burning is the current calories in you system.

I'd recommend getting a fat consumption and Vo2 tests done even if a health gym did it. It would at least give you an idea, if your way out of your range, and working yourself into the ground or not. It will also tell you where to keep your heart rate to burn the most fat, and where in the other heart rate areas that you need to work on. Most of the time, it's under 130 beats per minute, unless you've been trained in how to increase your fat burner in all heart rate ranges. But the general person who toss workout into the DVD and wants harder and harder workouts, usually 130 or a little lower, or if they are really luckly will have a twin peak, and get a 160 peak as well, where they'll burn fat, but usually it's a lot lower percentage then at their 130 level. And if it's fat you want to burn you got to start back at 130 and slowly work back up to the 155, with some other things to get a good fat burning, without the higher you go the less percentage of fat you burn per minute. But a steady climb.

Kit
 
>
>
> Hey Kathryn,
>
> I am 36 years old. I remember in my 20's when I was doing the
>Firm, I could do anything and my body took to it fine. I don't
>consider myself old,I will probably try to go the limit in any
>exercise.
>
>
> kim


Ahh...our twenties!
I'm 48, and I sometimes look back in envy (of myself) at the time when I could EAT almost anything and not get fat (though sometimes the jeans got a little tight!). It seems that the older I get, the more I need exercise and a clean diet to stay in the weight range I prefer, and to be fit. I sometimes wonder how some young people can be so out of shape, since they have age, and hormones, and metabolism going for them, and I don't anymore!
 
I don't know if I'm "allowed" to post in this thread, as I'm 28! :eek: But in my defense, I push myself too hard all the time. I love it! I've been an insulin-dependent diabetic since I was 10, and I lost 45 pounds a few years ago, so I equate my exercising as a way to beat my body/stress tendencies. When exercising feels so good, I don't see why it has to hurt us all sometimes. It really doesn't seem fair that when we're willing to put in the effort we can still end up losing due to injury or something.

I was training for a marathon a year and a half ago and ran 18 miles on my leg with a stress fracture, because I thought I could. I'm just now able to run 3 miles at a time without having to stop and walk. It's a tricky thing.

I was doing LoMax at 9:00 last night when my house was still 80 degrees, and I was thinking about this thread. I can see your husband's point, that maybe your injuries are telling you something, and I appreciate his concern and care for you since he clearly understands how important exercise is to you. But I think only you can HONESTLY answer the question of whether or not you're overdoing anything!

Good luck with everything!!
 
Kim, as someone who has really frightening biomechaics when it comes to high intensity, high impact exercise, let me say, hang in there and modify. Yes, I am getting older but it has been adapting to tight plantar fascia and injury prone legs-foot, knne, hip, that has allowed me to perservere. No more marathons but it's all good.
Bobbi http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif "Chick's rule!"

Tell me, what it is you plan to do with your one wild and precious life? -Mary Oliver
 
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