Diagnosis of Overtraining and Overreaching Syndrome in Athletes.
Overtraining (OT) is one of the most popular topics between coaches and researchers. The problem of this syndrome has been well-known for 70-years, however, the mechanism that induces OT remains unclear.1-3 Many recent papers have referred to the work of Kreider et al4 for the definitions of overreaching (OR) and OT.
An accumulation of training and/or non-training stress resulting in short-term decrement in performance capacity with or without related physiological and psychological signs and symptoms of maladaptation in which restoration of performance capacity may take from several days to several weeks.
For example, the recovery from OT syndrome (OTS) may require weeks to months while for OR resolved within days to weeks. Several psychological disturbances such as psychosocial stressors, sleep disorders and illness, decreased vigor, increased fatigue and reduced performance and the athletes will need weeks or months to recover.
OT or OR is recurrent problem and is often observed in high performance athletes and in different sports. More especially, studies have reported that the symptoms of OTS appeared in >60% of distance runners during their athletic careers, >50% of professional soccer players during a 5-month competitive season, and 33% of basketball players during a 6-week training camp.
In the study of Hedelin et al.12 examined overtrained athletes and found a decrease resting heart rate (-4.8%). Compared with normally subjects, the overtrained subjects had an increase in high-frequency and total power in the lying position during intensified training, which decreased after recovery.
Sport Exerc Med Open J. 2018; 4(3): 74-76. doi: 10.17140/SEMOJ-4-165
