Many lifters questioned if overtraining truly existed after these standards were embraced by the strength training profession. Several sportsmen argued that overtraining was the only way to go, and some bodybuilders were famous for proclaiming, "There is no such thing as overtraining, only undereating." "There is no such thing as overtraining, only under-recovery," was another popular meme. While it's true that poor nutrition can lead to a lack of recovery, science has proven that overtraining can also occur.
Overtraining is real, and we know it's significant and takes weeks or even months to recover from since it's not simply transitory exhaustion, but it also entails serious endocrine and neurological system impairments. Fortunately, if we stick to the dictionary definition of the term, full-fledged overtraining isn't all that prevalent.
This may be a matter of semantics, and I believe many lifters will continue to use "overtraining" as a catch-all term, but it's worth noting that most people use the term overtraining too loosely.
"Overtraining is defined as an increase in training volume and/or intensity of exercise resulting in performance decrements. Recovery from this condition often requires many weeks or months."
Overreaching is a shorter and less severe variation of overtraining, which is easily recovered from in just a few days. Many structured training programs utilize phases of (intentional) overreaching to provide variety to the training stimulus."
Overreaching is a less severe and temporary form of overtraining, although it shares many of the same symptoms as overtraining. The difference is that if you recognize it and behave effectively, you can recover quickly. If you know how to use it, it can even be beneficial.
Pushing yourself hard enough to the point of overreaching - where you just start to feel a sliver of those symptoms - can actually induce new muscle growth if you stop when you see it. If you continue to push yourself to the limit despite the symptoms, your performance and gains will plateau, or worse, you may begin to slide down the perilous path of significant overtraining.
In either instance, if you're experiencing the signs of overtraining and overreaching, you'll need to reduce your training intensity, load, or volume for a short period of time to allow your body to recuperate. Then you can repeat the process, pushing yourself to a new high point.
Knowing when to push harder and when to back off is both an art and a science, so you'll have to listen to your body, track your progress (or lack thereof), and keep an eye out for those signs to some extent. Negative symptoms do not appear for everyone at the same workload due to heredity and individual variances in work ability. The good news is that if you pay attention, it's not difficult to figure out what's going on for yourself when it happens to you.
