Exercise can be dangerous if you’re working out too hard

We all know that physical activity is good for our body and mind. No matter the age, people should try to exercise as often as possible, and, by combining it with nutritious meals, one can achieve the perfect lifestyle.

But what is not talked about enough is the risk of overexercising, sometimes taken to an extreme by people who want to lose weight fast. At the same time, some of them don’t know how to execute workouts correctly, and that can cause serious injuries in the long term. So, in the following paragraphs, we’ll talk about the dangers of working out too hard.

The risks of overexercising

Like with anything in life, you should know when to draw the line when exercising. Even if you know that human bones are stronger than steel, that doesn’t apply to muscles, nerves or joints. One wrong move and you might be unable to use your muscles at all. Therefore, you need to be aware of the dangers of exercising if you:

- Have an improper form. Maybe you’ve noticed that gyms are provided with mirrors, and that’s not coincidentally. When working out, you need to watch your form and body position to ensure that you’re executing an exercise correctly. Failing to maintain it can lead to micro-trauma in your muscles and joints.

- Overtrain. This can happen when the training load exceeds your recovery capacity. You’ll feel more stressed because without rest, the stress hormone in your body (cortisol) will have high levels, and your body will slowly break down.

- Overuse. When you’re focused on only one part of your body to work on, you’re limiting your range of motion and inhibiting the strength of that muscle group, resulting in pinched nerves. You can avoid that by balancing your workouts and training all your muscle groups. 

- Don’t know how to use gym equipment. One of the biggest mistakes you can make when going to the gym is figuring out by yourself how those machines work. If you use the equipment wrong, some of it might cause you health problems. For example, a back extension machine can increase pressure in your lumbar spine, resulting in the risk of herniation of vertebral discs. 

What can you do to recover?

Sometimes, it can take too much time to recover, and your body will feel sore for a few days. In that case, you should pay more attention to how you treat your body and talk to your doctor. So, here’s what you should do:

- Sleep more so your muscles have time to recover

- Drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration

- Massage your body to improve flexibility and decrease future soreness after workouts

- Eat a balanced diet with proteins and carbohydrates to restore glycogen levels in your body 

You can also go to the doctor to prescribe some medication or supplements, but be careful with such treatments, as an official institution does not authorise some products; therefore, consuming them can harm your kidneys and arteries. The dosage is very important here, so it would be a better idea to recover in natural ways and avoid any medication. 

And be careful with the doctor you’re seeing because some of them are not certified or might misdiagnose you, which can worsen your condition. Of course, in that case, you can file a claim for medical negligence and get your compensation. In that case, you’d need to provide evidence through medical records and other ways so that you can be eligible. 

What to avoid when recovering after a workout 

For better recovery, you should avoid:

- Smoking tobacco (negatively impacts your musculoskeletal system)

- Drinking alcohol (impairs your muscles’ ability to replenish glycogen)

- Not stretching (so your muscles won’t easily get used to you working out)

- Eating too much or not at all

The benefits of working out 

But don’t let these things discourage you from working out! It would be best to hire a professional trainer to teach you the basics and how to do your workout correctly, but an alternative would be to do tons of research on how the muscles work and how to avoid strains or other problems. Besides the risks, there are plenty of benefits from regular exercising.

Exercise can improve your mood

Plenty of studies have proved that working out can make you feel happier and decrease feelings of anxiety and stress. That’s because exercise can increase the production of endorphins and make the serotonin hormones rise. It doesn’t matter what type of exercise you do or how intense it is because you’ll feel better anyway. 

Exercise can maintain your muscles and bones 

Working out can promote your muscles’ ability to absorb amino acids; these organic compounds will help your muscles grow and reduce tearing them down. Also, if you start exercising early, you’ll build bone density, which helps prevent osteoporosis. High-impact exercises (running) and impact sports (basketball) are believed to promote a higher bone density.

Exercise can reduce the risk of diseases

According to the National Library of Medicine, chronic diseases are caused by a lack of regular exercise. And because working out can improve insulin sensitivity, heart health and decrease cholesterol levels, it is believed that it can prevent the development of some chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, hypertension and even some types of cancer. 

Exercise can help in maintaining a healthy brain

Working out can give you more clarity and peace of mind. That’s because it promotes the flood of blood and oxygen to your brain when your heart rate increases. It is also shown that exercising is causing the hippocampus (the part in your brain involved in the learning and memory-making process) to grow in size. 

Other benefits

Hearing people who exercise that sleep well, have great skin and are energetic all the time shouldn’t make you question it because it’s all true. Of course, the results of working out may vary considering your health condition, but overall, exercising benefits everyone!

In the end, the risks outweigh the benefits, but you still need to be careful and take care of your body.