WSJ: Are you exercising too much?

[Anonymous]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/are-you-exercising-too-much-studies-flag-risks-of-overexercising-11655410337?mod=hp_trending_now_article_pos4

I realize the article is behind a paywall. My takeaway from the piece is that the authors are making the point that yes, you can exercise too much, but their examples aren't really that compelling for a regular fit person. They obviously point out elite athletes that suffer exercise/training-related injuries, and talk about the damage you can do if you hike the Grand Canyon in a day without being appropriately trained. The only other group they talk about in some detail are people over 60.

Otherwise, the piece I was interested was about HIIT, and the big takeaway is from only looking at 11 people:
The study conducted muscle biopsies on 11 people over four weeks of high-intensity interval training. The subjects tolerated 90 minutes a week of the HIIT exercise; the harm occurred when the weekly exercise reached 152 minutes. The excessive exercise also reduced the participants’ glucose tolerance, affecting their bodies’ ability to process sugar. The conditions partially reversed when the exercise intensity was reduced.

Is this just lazy research? Lazy journalism? As a 42 year old that exercises every day (yes, usually HIIT, sometimes with weights for extra work) I feel like I'm the target of the headline, but nothing here was useful for people that actually might be exercising too much. Anyone have a different view?

[Anonymous]

It’s been long studied that working out too much is just like any other addiction and it has it negative consequences.

This is not new.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://www.wsj.com/articles/are-you-exercising-too-much-studies-flag-risks-of-overexercising-11655410337?mod=hp_trending_now_article_pos4

I realize the article is behind a paywall. My takeaway from the piece is that the authors are making the point that yes, you can exercise too much, but their examples aren't really that compelling for a regular fit person. They obviously point out elite athletes that suffer exercise/training-related injuries, and talk about the damage you can do if you hike the Grand Canyon in a day without being appropriately trained. The only other group they talk about in some detail are people over 60.

Otherwise, the piece I was interested was about HIIT, and the big takeaway is from only looking at 11 people:
The study conducted muscle biopsies on 11 people over four weeks of high-intensity interval training. The subjects tolerated 90 minutes a week of the HIIT exercise; the harm occurred when the weekly exercise reached 152 minutes. The excessive exercise also reduced the participants’ glucose tolerance, affecting their bodies’ ability to process sugar. The conditions partially reversed when the exercise intensity was reduced.

Is this just lazy research? Lazy journalism? As a 42 year old that exercises every day (yes, usually HIIT, sometimes with weights for extra work) I feel like I'm the target of the headline, but nothing here was useful for people that actually might be exercising too much. Anyone have a different view?

I haven't read it, but the headline does seem click-baity/sensationalist. I imagine some of the article is too. However, HIIT's benefits have been overstated for a long time, in part because sensationalist articles. It sounds really great to hear that you can get get the same benefits from 7 minutes of HIIT than you can from 45 minutes of cardio, but the reality is a lot more complicated, especially since it's really too hard for most people to do HIIT the way the science says you need to do it, and plenty of people get overuse injuries from trying it. Plus it mostly helps with VO2 max and stuff like that, not regular old weight loss.

It is just kinda boring to say "you really need to start slow with an exercise program and if it hurts you need to see a PT but then you can do a lot of exercise, and here are the pros and cons of different types."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s been long studied that working out too much is just like any other addiction and it has it negative consequences.

This is not new.

NP. Have you read the criteria for exercise addiction? It's pretty extreme. The criteria are things like "try to exercise less but cannot stop," "exercise interferes with work and relationships" "becomes extremely irritable when hasn't exercised," etc. I don't think that's common in people who don't do extreme exercise like triathlons or marathons.

[Anonymous]

I don't think I will ever fall into that category
You'd have to pay me!

[Anonymous]

Even the fittest people and professional athletes take rest days. Doing HIIT every day is not giving your body enough time to rest and recover. I'm 44 and find I need those rest days (which can be yoga and walks) or I get injured faster and have a harder time recovering. Especially as you get older, these things compound.

[Anonymous]

Looking around at all the skinnyfat I see every day, it is obvious, no, Americans are not exercising too much.