Fitness Fatigue

I've been on the eliptical for two miles (about 30 minutes) every other day. Recently, I've begun to feel extremely tired about 10 minutes into my workout. It never used to be like this, in fact I used to get surges of energy while working out. Now it just feels like I could tip over... I eat before I work out (good stuff, not crap food), drink lots of water, I don't smoke... I'm not sure what is going on. Any tips?

I'm not the most knowledgeable concerning fitness around here, so take this lightly. When I begin to feel like that, I take a bit of time off. After a couple days to a week, you may regain some energy. Have you tried changing up your workouts as well? Also, are you eating enough calories and getting enough sleep?

Not really able to answer the question properly without knowing a bit more history, including what ''eating good'' is for you, your weight...medical [physcial and mental - if any]issues....etc. 

It can be just workout fatigue...meaning taking a week off will do your body and mind good. I also agree that changing up your routine...doing other things besides elliptical, may be beneficial. Often times, you can become bored [whether you realize it or not] while doing the same thing over and over..not to mention, you must introduce 'muscle confusion' into your workout to keep your body and metabolism at optimal ranges.

Change the workout, it could be to intense. Try something lighter and increase the time.

Go see your doctor and check your iron levels.  Low iron (either from a change in diet or otherwise) is the number one cause of fatigue in women.  You just don't have enough hemoglobin to move the oxygen around your body.

Or you could try to donate blood.  They check your hemoglobin levels...and it's free - win-win.

Take a week off from the gym. The rest will cure the staleness and fatigue.

I like to take an entire MONTH off twice a year.

i doubt it has anything to do with overtraining, but more likely nutritional and/or hormonal issues

Don't eat BEFORE working out.....

Every day is fine for elliptical training.... in general the first half mile of a run or walk hurts...then you get into the 'zone' and your mind wanders and your body flows and you just cover mileage.... a little warmup stretching before and after each workout is a good idea (the more intense the workout the more warmup and cool down time is REQUIRED).

this may be a nutritional/hormonal issue.....lack of iron in the blood, no fat in your diet (low fat, not no fat), vitamin D deficiency...take a multivitamin once a day

Last year when this happened to me I found out I was pregnant...

Original Post by rjsamp:

Don't eat BEFORE working out.....

Every day is fine for elliptical training.... in general the first half mile of a run or walk hurts...then you get into the 'zone' and your mind wanders and your body flows and you just cover mileage.... a little warmup stretching before and after each workout is a good idea (the more intense the workout the more warmup and cool down time is REQUIRED).

this may be a nutritional/hormonal issue.....lack of iron in the blood, no fat in your diet (low fat, not no fat), vitamin D deficiency...take a multivitamin once a day

how would not eating help??

Original Post by ching12:

how would not eating help??

It's not that she should not eat, but that she should try eating less before a workout. Working out on a full stomach makes lots of people feel nauseous or otherwise not great. IE: Before I go for a run I'll usually only eat half a banana or an orange. Breakfast comes after I've come home and stretched.

Oh man did your post speak to me!! I have been feeling the exact same way over the last week. The funny thing is that my all lifts were up in terms of pounds that I did for the week. However, on my rest days and after my sessions I just felt a lot more drained then I should and my enthusiasm is waning a little bit. I could only go for 30 minutes today on my lifting session and I can usually go for up to an hour of intense lifting with no problem.

I have been avoiding taking a week off because I love exercise. However, this last week served as a wake up call to me. I am finally ready to give in and give my body a solid week off with no exercise at all. I am going to catch up on sleep, see the chiropractor to get my lower back worked on a bit (tight from doing a lot of squats), and just relax in general. From now on, I will take a week off every three months like clockwork. I hate the way that I am feeling right now.

One question for Fitnessgirl... What do you recommend in terms of calories per day on a week off?  Do I continue to at least get my maintenance or do I go on a deficit because I am not going to be working out?

vman didnt you start doing modified tabata recently? maybe your body is adjusting to the new regime. and jumping rope wasnt it? the high impact can aggravate your lower back.

imo, time off is integral to maintaining a healthy mind-body connect and a postive attitude.

Original Post by vyperman7:

One question for Fitnessgirl... What do you recommend in terms of calories per day on a week off?  Do I continue to at least get my maintenance or do I go on a deficit because I am not going to be working out?

 Continue to get, at least, your maintenance. I never change up my nutrition during my one week recovery times.  Your body, mentally and physically, needs that week. Your muscles still need to be fed. 

Periodized training gives better results than non-periodized in - well, just about every study according to my latest fun read, Strength training for sports.

 It's a bit of an art form to select the right model to meet certain athletic goals at the right time, and getting highly motivated athletes to take time off is a beeyotch even when the program calls for it, but in general I recommend that you take one week off from your program evey 8-12 weeks.

 Your week off doesn't have to be a week of sitting on the couch eating donuts to "Days of our Lives" reruns, it's actually preferable to do it as active rest. Pick a couple friends and go play Ultimate frisbee, do some cross-training, play some golf, or try a sport you've never tried before just as long as it isn't essentially a variation on what you're normally doing. (No fair trying a week of Olympic weightlifting when your major training modality is strength training ;)

 And yeah, the whole idea of the active rest/recovery week is to give your body a break from constant external stress to prevent overuse injuries and disspate accumulated fatigue. Dieting is a major, major stressor on your whole system and taking a maintenance break from it every now and again helps.

 In general - flagging motivation is a sign of incipient overtraining. You'll feel it in your motivation long before overtraining causes a performance drop; motivation droops in response to CNS fatigue. Hence the 8-12 weeks recommendation; though some high-level athletes need to change up the program every 4 weeks 'cause they're so close to their genetic limit that their adaptation window is awfully close to the overtraining window.

Original Post by watergirl:

vman didnt you start doing modified tabata recently? maybe your body is adjusting to the new regime. and jumping rope wasnt it? the high impact can aggravate your lower back.

imo, time off is integral to maintaining a healthy mind-body connect and a postive attitude.

Yeah I started doing that recently. I did a circuit of front squats/jump rope with modified tabata intervals of 1:2 (20/40). I am not ready for Tabata yet. I also did the same thing with sprints going for 10 seconds and only walking for 20 seconds. I did 20 sprints in 10 minutes..LOL

My body is probably just adjusting. Even so though, I need a week off.

enjoy your down time. :)

Original Post by mogochud:

Original Post by ching12:

how would not eating help??

It's not that she should not eat, but that she should try eating less before a workout. Working out on a full stomach makes lots of people feel nauseous or otherwise not great. IE: Before I go for a run I'll usually only eat half a banana or an orange. Breakfast comes after I've come home and stretched.

 while each person reacts differently, I would not suggest someone to eat less, but i would suggest the individual eat smarter....

Original Post by ching12:

It's not that she should not eat, but that she should try eating less before a workout. Working out on a full stomach makes lots of people feel nauseous or otherwise not great. IE: Before I go for a run I'll usually only eat half a banana or an orange. Breakfast comes after I've come home and stretched.

Actually you should get 20-30 grams of protein, 50-75 grams of complex carbs, and minimal fats before a workout. You want to keep the fats low so that the food digests faster, and the complex carbs help give energy for the workout. The protein helps the muscles during the workout as well. The main thing is that you want to wait 60-90 minutes after you finish eating and then you are good to go. Not eating enough before a workout can make it hard to get through it.

My pre workout meal is always 4 ounces of chicken or turkey cutlets and a cup of oatmeal. I give myself a good hour plus before starting my workout. I always have a great workout after eating this.

why does it say i posted that in your quote vyperman7