5 Warning Signs That You Have an Unhealthy Relationship with Exercise
Exercise is definitely a healthy habit to get into! Regular exercise is excellent for weight loss and weight maintenance. There are also a number of studies that have shown how beneficial working out is for your mental health and overall wellbeing. While working out can be a wonderful way to take care of your body, there is such a thing as overdoing it. If you’re a workout lover you may find yourself spending long hours at the gym, taking back to back classes or cancelling plans with friends in order to get in a good workout. On the surface these may not seem like unhealthy behaviors – however, there are small signs that may point to something bigger. Read on to discover 5 serious signs of an unhealthy relationship with exercise!
You Use Exercise To Avoid Serious Issues
Many people turn to working out as a way to get much needed “me time”, as a way to manage stress, depression and anxiety, and as a way to blow off steam. While these are all perfectly valid reasons to workout, it’s important that you’re not using the gym as a way to avoid serious issues. “When people are going through depression or anxiety or they’re making a job change, exercise can become an addiction because they are trying to cope with their life,” says Dr. Bonnie Marks. It’s common for people to avoid seeking treatment for their issues through endorphins produced by working out, rather than getting to the core of their issues.
You Put Your Health At Risk
Exercise is supposed to energize you! Regularly working out should help you feel stronger and healthier. If you’re constantly waking up with little to no energy, getting sick, or injuring yourself often – yet you still head to the gym – that may indicate that there is something seriously wrong. Dr. Marks notes that people with an addiction to working out will workout if they’re sick or injured. She says, “When they’re injured, sometimes they’ll just keep going, and it causes them to be injured even more and could lead to overuse injuries, exhaustion, depression, or extreme weight loss.” A healthy relationship with exercise starts with listening to your body! If you’re feeling drained or your muscles are aching, these are signs to take a rest day. If you’re seriously ill or injured, that’s also a sign to scale back on your workouts. Forcing yourself to workout when your body is clearly at a breaking point could force you to stop working out completely!
You Spend Way Too Much Time At The Gym
It’s totally normal to enjoy spending time at the gym. It’s also perfectly normal to have long sweat sessions. However, if you find yourself spending hours at the gym, or spending all of your free time working out, this may be a problem. The Center For Disease Control recommends two sessions per week of strength training and 2 ½ hours of moderate aerobic exercise per week. Dr. Marks admits it’s a little difficult to assess just how much is too much, however, she explains that going to back to back classes or aiming to hit the weekly recommendation in a day is way too much. Dr. Joel Minden also notes that it’s important to notice if the disadvantages of working out this much outweigh the advantages (i.e. injury, exhaustion, giving up your social life, hobbies etc).
You Track And Overanalyze Everything
Fitness apps, trackers and journals are practically everywhere these days. It’s never been easier to log the amount of food that we eat, the number of miles we run, the calories we’re burning, and how often we’re drinking water. These tools help to give us much needed motivation and insight into our personal goals, however, they may be causing more harm than good. If you’re solely motivated by these numbers rather than the benefits of these numbers, this is an indication that you have a negative relationship with exercise. Dr. Marks explains that when people become obsessed with the number of calories that they’re burning or a specific weight on the scale, they’re neglecting the benefits of how exercise is supposed to make you feel. If you’re constantly trying to reach a certain number of steps, hit a number on the scale, or are obsessed with outdoing your performance from last week’s number – it may be time to assess your relationship with working out.
Working Out Isn’t Fun Anymore
These days there are an endless number of boutique fitness classes that keep your workouts fun, versatile and engaging. There’s no limit to the number of workouts that can make sweating an enjoyable experience. If you’re not enjoying your boutique fitness classes anymore, this is a sign that you may be overdoing it. Marks says, “Most people look forward to exercise, even if they say, ‘Oh, I don’t feel like going to the gym tonight.” If you’re dragging yourself to the gym or a boutique fitness class – even though you’re dreading it – you may be developing an unhealthy relationship with working out.
