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While everyone knows performance doesn't improve without some effort, the right ratio of stress to training and recovery is key. Rather than improving performance, overtraining can lead to a decline in strength, power, speed, endurance-and even motivation. Initially, stressing your muscles results in fitness gains because your strength is increasing, explains Kevin Stone, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon at the Stone Clinic in San Francisco, California. "However, if you overdo it, the performance curve will start to decline." The result? A physical state often referred to as cumulative microtrauma, in which stress hormones and other metabolic changes damage muscle cells to the point where the body begins to show signs of exhaustion.

Symptoms of overtraining can be psychological as well as physical, and may include loss of appetite, weight loss, anxiety, sleeplessness and depression or feelings of lethargy, according to Raoul Garcia, certified personal trainer with a degree in human movement from Hunter College in Manhattan. Overtraining can also cause an increase in resting heart rate, swollen lymph nodes, menstrual irregularities, upper respiratory infections and unusual soreness. "If you are experiencing any of these symptoms," Garcia says, "You have to start listening to your body and stop training excessively.''

But these symptoms do not always necessarily indicate that you're pushing too hard at the gym; they can also be caused by a combination of environmental, psychological and physiological factors. For example, inadequate nutrition or an underlying disease that hasn't been properly diagnosed can have a profound effect on your physical condition. "If food intake is mismatched with activity level, people become depleted of certain necessary minerals, vitamins and proteins," explains Stone. To achieve successful workout, you need to have "a good understanding of the nutritional requirements of the sport you're participating in."

You can also put yourself at risk for exhaustion and other physical and psychological problems if you work out hard while you're under an unusual amount of stress, or push yourself to reach goals that are beyond your physical abilities. "Mental attitude, physical exhaustion, and health and nutritional status all come into play, and if any one of those are mismanaged, it can lead to overtraining."

Before you diagnose yourself with fatigue due to overtraining, examine all aspects of your life. "Look at all the other options," Garcia says, "And if stress from another part of your life doesn't seem to be the cause of your symptoms and you're otherwise healthy, it's possible that you're overtraining." If you suspect that your problems are a result of your fitness regimen, cut down on the intensity, frequency and duration of your exercise.

If you've been feeling fine but sometimes wonder if you're pushing yourself too hard, ask yourself whether your drive was once healthy, but has now become maniacal, says Stone. To halt the consequences of overtraining, Stone recommends meeting with an experienced trainer and a sports nutritionist so you can build a well-rounded training program that includes realistic goals. It's also important that you cross-train and vary your training methods. Says Garcia, when it comes to fitness, keeping your body functioning at its best "is all about variety."

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