How much is too much?

Most of you know by now that I love to exercise, and before you get all full of hatred you should know that I wasn't always like this, in fact I HATED to workout, which is why from 1994 through 2002 the only time I broke a sweat was when I realized I'd run out of peanut butter cups. mmmmmmm

Yet I digress, so yes I workout a lot, six days a week, sometimes twice a day, so when does it become too much? My husband would say "now"...but we will ignore him. xox  There are some key things to watch for if you are working out frequently:

- fatigue
- aches and pains in muscles and joints
- elevated resting heart rate
- lack of motivation to exercise
- inability to complete a workout
- loss of appetite
- headaches
- increased susceptibility to colds, sore throat, illness

I don't suffer from these, and pray daily for a loss of appetite, sometimes I do get fatigued but I listen to my body, I can tell when I've been pushing it too hard and I take a day or two off. Here are some tips to avoid over training:

- never weight train the same muscles on consecutive days
- mix up your workout routine to reduce muscle fatigue
- take at least one complete rest day a week
- be sure to fuel your body adequately before and after exercise
- get 8 hours of sleep each night

Here is a typical week of exercise for me...keeping in mind this is not a beginner program.

Monday - 6-10km run and 60 min hot yoga
Tuesday - kickboxing
Wednesday - 6-10km run and kickboxing
Thursday - kickboxing and weight training
Friday - 60 min hot yoga
Saturday - Crossfit and kickboxing
Sunday - rest or yoga

I'll mix this up and add another weight training session instead of yoga or do a longer run instead of kickboxing, I try to listen to how my body is feeling and go from there.  

Have fun, do what you enjoy and hey if you've given it your all at the gym all week and you want to spend all day Sunday on the couch watching movies, then do it!