Recognizing and Preventing Overtraining: What Every Competitive Swimmer Should Know

Key Takeaways

• Listen to your body before it forces you to.

• More isn’t always better — smarter is better.

• Recovery is training.

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What “Overtraining” Really Means

Overtraining isn’t just “working hard.”

It’s when training stress exceeds your body’s ability to recover — for weeks or months — leading to slower times, constant fatigue, and mood or sleep problems.

There are two key stages before "Overtraining Syndrome":

Stage	Description	Recovery Time
Functional Overreaching (FOR)	Short-term fatigue after heavy training that improves performance after recovery (e.g. a hard training camp).	Days to ~2 weeks
Non-Functional Overreaching (NFOR)	Fatigue that lasts longer and performance does not rebound quickly.	Weeks
Overtraining Syndrome (OTS)	Chronic maladaptation — long-term fatigue, poor recovery, and loss of performance.

⚠️ Early Warning Signs to Watch For

You don’t need a lab test — your body tells you first.

If two or more of these appear for several days in a row, it’s a red flag:

Mind & Mood

• Feel “flat,” irritable, or anxious without clear reason

• Trouble focusing or staying motivated

• Dreading practice or losing enjoyment

Body & Performance

• Slower times even at normal effort

• Easy sets feel unusually hard

• Muscles sore longer than usual

• More minor illnesses or injuries

• Morning resting heart rate consistently higher

Recovery & Lifestyle

• Poor sleep quality or early waking

• Low appetite or weight changes

• Missed periods or hormonal irregularities (for females)

What To Do If You Notice Signs

1. Tell your coach early — don’t hide it.

2. Reduce training load for a few days (lighter volume or fewer intense sets).

3. Prioritize recovery:

• Get 8–9 hours of sleep

• Eat enough calories (especially carbs and protein)

• Hydrate well

4. Track how you feel daily: energy, mood, soreness, and sleep.

• If not improving in 5–7 days → talk to coach, athletic trainer, or physician.

Simple Daily Self-Monitoring

Question	Score (1 = poor, 5 = great)
Energy level today	1–5
Sleep quality	1–5
Muscle soreness	1–5
Mood/stress	1–5
Motivation to train	1–5

→ Add up your score.

If your total drops below 15 for 3 days in a row, tell your coach — you may need more recovery.

 What Research Says

• Swimmers who monitor daily mood and training load (sRPE) are far less likely to develop chronic fatigue.

• Overtraining is multifactorial: not just physical, but also influenced by sleep, nutrition, and psychological stress.

• Tapering (reducing volume 40–60% before meets) and planned rest weeks are proven to enhance performance and protect recovery.

Use this PDF tool for your team to monitor for overtraining:

Swimmer_Overtraining_Education_Handout.pdf

Download PDF • 3KB