4 Signs You Are Doing Too Much Cardio

The whole reason anyone gets involved in exercise that improves the cardiovascular system is to increase their overall strength and stamina and endurance. At the same time one can also boost their long term health outlook because of the benefits are this type of exercise can boost heart and lung capacity. So, in essence, there is nothing in the world of strength and conditioning that can do more for a person who is looking for ways to improve their life both in the short term while increasing the likelihood of having a better quality of life as they age. This is especially true regarding their senior years.

The only real problem with this approach to fitness is that there are limits to the benefits that a cardiovascular regimen can provide. This simply means that anyone, no matter how young or physically well they may be, can go too far in their quest for good health. So, keeping all of that in mind it's time to take a look at some of the signs that you might be getting that you are pushing your quest for fitness beyond the limits of safe and beneficial results.

1. You Are Always Exhausted

One of the key reasons anyone gets involved in exercise of a serious nature is the fact that they feel like they are not as strong, alert and energetic as they wanted to feel and think that they should be feeling. And, when someone finds themselves in this situation, the first thing they generally do is get involved in some kind of cardio exercise.

The problem that most people in this situation find is that they don't really have a good idea of how to go about developing a regimen that is both safe and beneficial. Yes, without this kind of knowledge many people end up either not doing enough exercise to be truly beneficial or going too far and actually hurting themselves by overdoing it. This tends to lead people to drop their routine and losing all of the potential benefits that come with sticking with a solid routine.

They key to avoiding this kind of issue is to get the right kind of information that will allow you to develop a regimen that will get you the kind of benefits that will greatly improve your life while helping you to avoid any issues regarding setting yourself up for the potential for injuries or just being counterproductive.

2. You Don't Feel Stronger

Here you are putting everything you have into getting in shape and you end up actually feeling weaker. The scenario probably looks something like this. You go out for a run and you feel good but then you go to the gym to do some weight training and, when all is said and done, you end up feeling like you are actually a little weaker than when you started.

The reason for this is pretty simple and that is due to the fact that engaging in too much cardio can actually eat away at the gains in muscle building that weight training can bring. Looking closer at the facts one will find that, although cardio exercise is great at burning fat, it also ends up eating away at muscle growth in the process.

What this means is that anyone engaging in both exercises designed to burn fat and build up stamina and endurance as well as a regimen of weight training designed to build up muscle can find themselves in a totally counterproductive activity. In the end the goal should be to find a balance between activities which help to build up stamina and endurance while burning fat while building up muscles through a weightlifting regime.

3. You Can't Fall Asleep

So, the day came that you got involved in an exercise regimen that helped you feel more alert and having more stamina and endurance. And, the more you did this activity which might have been running outdoors or on a treadmill or any other activity that produces that kind of result, you found yourself feeling better and better. But, at some point, you found that you were having more and more trouble falling asleep at night. Is there a connection you may be asking? The answer is, quite possibly, yes.

The reason for this is that the more cardio exercise that you engage in the more likely it is that you are increasing your heart rate and building up the levels of cortisol which is a stress hormone. The end result of this is that these increases can lead to a heightened level of alertness which can make it extremely hard to fall asleep at a time that is conducive to the kind of packed schedule that so many active people have to deal with.

4. You Are Getting Injured More

It does no one any good to work hard to improve your physical condition only to find out that they are actually achieving the opposite. This means that if you are finding yourself engaged in a cardio routine that leaves you feeling damaged or less healthy than you did before you got started on the whole endeavor. This kind of thing happens because people tend to get involved in exercise routines without truly understanding the best practices that go with them.

What happens in this case is that people go well beyond the optimal point of getting beneficial gains from their cardio or weight training regimens and end up placing a great deal of undue stress on various parts of their bodies. Now, it is true that there is a certain amount of stress, strain and even pain associated with getting a beneficial amount of serious exercise but there is a point where that normal degree of stress and strain reaches the tipping point and people start to experience issues which can lead to injuries and pain which can prevent them from continuing their exercise regimen.