Does over-exercising lead to stress?

Those indulging in workouts lasting more than 90 minutes at a time are known to suffer poor mental health, warns Shalini Bhargava

An excess of anything always tends to have a negative impact. The same holds true for even workouts. A rigorous workout does aid in a happy, and healthy mind, but various studies have revealed that engaging in too much physical activity could have an undesirable impact on healthy cerebral health.

Staying energetic and active through activities like aerobics, cycling and team sports for about 30-60 minutes per day, will definitely have a positive and favourable impact on mental health. Nevertheless, overdoing exercise could be harmful to psychological well-being. Those indulging in workouts lasting more than 90 minutes at a time are known to suffer poor mental health. This is due to the fact that over-exercising tends to strain our bodies a lot which in turn, tampers with our mind’s healthy functioning. Overdoing exercises tends to physically exhaust the body leading to a burn out. Apart from that, it can also lead to physical injuries.

People who are used to working out for a long period of time may be doing so owing to the fact that they are displaying compulsive or other poor emotional behavioural patterns, encompassing of body dysmorphia or eating and weight maladies. On the other hand, over-exercising to this degree has a possibility of causing bodily and emotive anxiety, tiredness
and irritation, all of which can have a deadly impact on mental health. People who train way too much at a time can also suffer from a bipolar disorder, bordering on maniacal tendencies.

Also at jeopardy are those people having addictive personas because they are over-exercising. Another condition faced by people is a secondary workout addiction, in which exercise becomes a part of an eating disorder. This can be commonly witnessed in sportspersons and athletes with anorexia nervosa. Athletes who instinctively engage in fitness to reduce weight and regulate body fat, sometimes push themselves to the point of muscle injury and damage. This is most commonly found in sports like skating, gymnastics, boxing, and wrestling. Over-training can cause misery, weakness and physical problems like sleep disturbance. Everything in moderation is good. The key is to go slow with your fitness schedule and take some time off.

(The author is director, JG’s Fitness Centre)