Do Gym Teachers Train Too Much?
Identifying the predisposing factors, signs and symptoms of overreaching and overtraining in physical education professionals
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Fitness professionals training over 10 hours/week in aerobic exercise showed no worse mood or burnout than those lifting weights.
Conventional wisdom says long-duration cardio increases cortisol and burnout risk, but these aerobic specialists had mood profiles just as healthy as others.
Practical Takeaways
Eat within two hours after training and prioritize sleep to reduce burnout risk—even if you train a lot.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Fitness professionals training over 10 hours/week in aerobic exercise showed no worse mood or burnout than those lifting weights.
Conventional wisdom says long-duration cardio increases cortisol and burnout risk, but these aerobic specialists had mood profiles just as healthy as others.
Practical Takeaways
Eat within two hours after training and prioritize sleep to reduce burnout risk—even if you train a lot.
Publication
Journal
PeerJ
Year
2018
Authors
R. Viana, P. Gentil, Vinício S. Lorenço, C. Vieira, M. Campos, D. Santos, W. Silva, M. Andrade, R. Vancini, C. D. de Lira
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Claims (9)
Gym trainers and fitness pros in Brazil don’t seem to have many sleep problems — on average, their sleep quality scores are pretty good, below 3 out of 5.
PE teachers who recover well and eat shortly after their workouts are less likely to experience the symptoms of overtraining or burnout.
Overtraining that really messes you up is super rare — most people don’t train hard or long enough to actually hit that point.
Brazilian gym teachers and fitness pros who train hard—over 5 hours a week—say they don’t feel overly tired or burned out, and their survey scores show they’re doing okay mentally and physically.
Physical education pros who do lots of cardio, strength training, or both seem to have similar mood patterns — and most of them have a healthy mental profile, no matter which type of workout they prefer.