Signs you might be overtraining in the UAE

Overtraining in the UAE can cause problems both physically and mentally. What are the main signs you might be overtraining and how to avoid them.
signs of over training for fitness in the uae

What are the main signs that you might be over training in Abu Dhabi, Dubai or Sharjah?

Article Contributor: Andrew

For many men and women in the UAE having a fitness goal means they are eager to reach that goal in as little time as possible.

While goals like weight loss or general fitness may take less time other goals like muscle building, flexibility or even learning something like kickboxing you have to have some patience because overtraining in the UAE can be a big problem.

Table Of Contents

Why you shouldn’t train too much until you are used to your new fitness lifestyle.

Before we look at some of the main signs that you might be overtraining, let’s take a step back and look at the reasons why overtraining can be a problem.

  • Overtraining can really have an effect and impact on your motivations and focus. If you push yourself too hard without any guidance you will sooner or later burn yourself out which can impact your training. If you suffer from a burn out it can effect you for days or weeks which can ultimately cause a problem with your progress towards your fitness goals.

  • If you are too eager and train too much you are putting yourself at a great risk of injury. Training injuries are all too common. Many newcomers think they can run further than they should, they think they can lift heavier weights than they should and they also push their cardio fitness too far.

  • If dieting and weight loss are your main reasons for training it can be easy to think that the less you eat and the more you train will lead to a slimmer and fitter body. However, this is far from the truth. Not eating enough can make you ill for one thing and for another, overtraining muscles if you are not eating enough means you’ll lose muscle mass too quickly which can lead to sagging skin and a general unhealthy look.

Of course, one of the quickest and easiest ways to ensure you are not overtraining is to hire a professional male or female personal trainer in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah. Using their skills and knowledge they know who much you should be training, how much you should be eating and most importantly how to avoid overtraining.

Signs you need to watch out for which could mean you are overtraining

1. Elevated heart resting rate

Your heart rate will rise when you exercise. This is perfectly normal and good for your cardio fitness and also for muscle building as more blood is pumped around the body.

However, if your heart rate is high when restings (after you have exercised) for longer periods of time this is a sure sign that you need to cut back on your training.

According to an older study found here on the NCBI website  a increase in resting heart rate of 5 BPM or more than normal can be a sure sign that you are overtraining.

2. Chronic or persistent injuries

Training incorrectly or just training too much in the UAE can cause injuries, not just newbies with no exercise experience but also people who train and exercise on a regular basis.

The occasional injury is bound to happen at some point. Lift a weight incorrectly, trip while jogging or even do a Yoga pose the wrong way and you’ll feel pain and discomfort for a couple of days.

However, if your injuries become chronic (regular and over a longer period) or persistent this is a sure sign that you are doing too much and/or not allowing yourself time to recover correctly after you have had an injury.

So, if you think you might be overtraining and causing more injuries it’s time to take a step back, allow yourself and your body more time to recover fully and even employ a personal trainer in the UAE with rehabilitation coaching experience.

Once you have recovered take a good look at your training schedule and maybe cut it down a little to avoid injuries caused by doing too much.

signs of over training for fitness in the uae

3. Loss of appetite

You might think that training, working out and exercise would increase your appetite because you are expending so much energy. This is normally correct.

However, when you overtrain in the UAE for extended periods it can have the opposite effect.

According to a study found here on healthline, if you train too much it can cause hormonal imbalances in the body that regulate how hungry or how full you feel. This often leads to feeling tired, decreased appetite and even more weight loss.

Even if weight loss is your goal this is a dangerous way to lose weight and is never advised. Overtraining and loss of appetite means you will lose muscle mass too and eventually burn out.

To ensure you don’t suffer from loss of appetite because of training contact one of the diet and nutrition specialist personal trainers on the UAE Personal Trainers website for full advice and information.

4. Restless sleep patterns or insomnia

Exercise is good for you, no doubt about that but exercising at the wrong time or even worse, too much exercise, can have detrimental effects on your sleeping patterns and can even cause insomnia which in the long term is not good for your overall health.

Without confusing you with the science, sleep is when your body has time to heal. If you overtrain your body doesn’t have sufficient time to heal itself between your vigorous workouts. This means you end up feeling tired and often exhausted.

Although not sleeping well because of training is rare it does happen so look out for the signs.

Training at the wrong time can also be problematic for many people. If you engage in physical exercise towards bedtime it can make you restless so try when possible to do your workouts early in the morning.

5. Psychological stress or depression

Overtraining in the UAE doesn’t just affect you physically.

Sometimes we all put ourselves under pressure when it comes to looking and feeling good. This is often seen more prevalently in younger people where the pressures of social media and more can be a problem.

However, whatever your age, stress from overtraining can be a real problem.

If you feel you are stressed or even depressed because of your training regime, speak with a professional and get advice from a personal trainer about how you can reduce the risks of overtraining.

6. Excessive fatigue

Without a doubt, a good training session, whether that’s cardio workouts including crossfit for weight loss or kickboxing in Abu Dhabi for increased endurance will often wear you out.


Although tiredness after a good workout is perfectly normal, as you get fitter and lose more weight the degree of fatigue should decrease with time. In other words you are getting fitter so walking up those stairs that used to be a problem or swimming a few extra lengths in the pool in Dubai will become much easier.

Excessive fatigue occurs when you overtrain but what do we mean by excessive fatigue? It’s simple. As mentioned earlier, after a good training session you will undoubtedly feel tired and often feel like you need a good rest. If you feel tired all the time, even after you should have recovered post training this is a sign of excessive fatigue.

It can take many forms too. From just feeling mentally tired to feeling physically exhausted all day.

Because you feel tired all the time when you have excessive fatigue this can also lead to being agitated and snappy.

7. Decreased performance

Our final sign of overtraining is decreased performance. Training and becoming fit is designed to improve your performance so it might seem a little strange to hear your performance will be decreased?

When you train in a normal way you will ‘gradually’ improve your performance. That might be your cardio performance if you are into sports, your ability to do more if you are overweight or even your performance when doing something like Pilates or Yoga.

But, when you overtrain you might be surprised that instead of being able to do more (lift more, run further, train for longer) you are actually only able to do less. This is again because your body isn’t given sufficient time to recover. When you train your muscles they need time to heal and recover, if you overtrain them you’re giving them time to fully heal which will ultimately affect your performance.

If overtraining is a problem how can you fix it?

Take some simple steps to avoid overtraining before you start training. 

However, if you feel you might be suffering from any of the points above, take a rest, re-examine your training schedule and get some professional advice from a personal trainer in Abu Dhabi, Dubai or Sharjah.

Find the best male or female personal trainer in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman or RAK.

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