You ready for it?
Okay, I’m gonna tell you, but you’ve got to keep reading to let me explain.
DO LESS!!!
What?! Ok, I know some of you just exited out and are no longer reading because that sounds insane.
“[HUSTLE CULTURE] TAKEN TO THE EXTREME CAN LEAVE YOU FEELING RUN DOWN, SICK, INJURED, AND FEELING LIKE A FAILURE FOR NOT BEING ABLE TO GRIND ALL DAY EVERY DAY.”
Even my podcast co-host, 11x world powerlifting champion, Jen Thompson shared with me on a recent episode (below) that when she’s feeling burned out, or training just feels like too much, she pushes her training to another day or does less sets in training, or an entirely different workout all together.
During periods of high stress these athletes recovery starts to dwindle and shows up as:
- Moodiness/irritability
- Difficulty sleeping
- Loss of desire to do anything not related to work or training
- Persistent fatigue
- Unexplained weight gain or weight loss
- Loss of enjoyment in other hobbies
All of the proper nutrition in the world is not going to help these athletes when things get to this point.
The answer here is to drop training volume or intensity for a little while. Training is a stressor on your body. If you can’t cut out work/school/family stress, this is the only place to reduce stress.
I’ve had great success with athletes dropping a training day and replacing it with other low intensity activities such as long walks, hiking, or biking.
Hustle culture is rampant in strength sports.
To a degree this is helpful in that it helps new athletes learn how to work hard and push themselves. But taken to the extreme it can leave you feeling run down, sick, injured, and feeling like a failure for not being able to grind all day every day.
If you’re looking for an expert in sports nutrition and recovery for strength athletes to help you feel great and perform to the best of your abilities, you can apply to work with one of our coaches here.
AUTHOR: DR. KRISTIN LANDER, DC, CISSN
Kristin has competed on the international stage in both powerlifting and Olympic weightlifting. She is a lover of all things barbell, nature, and nerdiness. She has helped hundreds of athletes over the last decade reach the highest level in their sport through her evidence-based nutrition methods, careful attention to detail, and individualized approach.