dploy

So I came down with this Vertigo thing last weekend and could not get a workout in until today.

For the week I was down I was irritable, mood & energy swings and irrational at times. Wife tells me I was very sensitive and hard to talk to.

Today I worked out in the gym with 1hr cardio and 45mins on the weights - feel great and back in a good mood.

So the question is: After consistently working out everyday one way or another, can a sudden stop make me crazy or is that unreasonable? It also could be that I was excessive and the break did me well...don't know but it would be nice to predict.

TIA

dnuzzomueller

I experience this aswell. From what I have learned over time is that it is related to essentially an addiction formed to the endorphines in the workout. Without the "fix" you feel antsy, angry, and irritable. When you get your "fix" again you level out. I still experience this even after a few years. It takes a while to get used to (in my case) it just takes time to learn how to calm yourself down and relax, it doesn't always work, some days are better then others but aslong as you are working out every single day you will experience it. Even now if I do not get 2 hours of cardio in every day I just feel restless. It improves in time but you need to be conscious of it.

Best suggestion I have is to literally wean yourself off exercise, or wean yourself to a lesser level.

To answer your question directly: No you are not crazy, it is a documented phenomena.

theschwinnman

Me as well, I have to abstane from riding for a month and the first week was horrible, I had mood swings, was cranky and slept for every second I could throughout the day, now I feel fine. Only two and a half weeks to go!

paulclaude

Yes, time off the bike gives me this as well. I think the accumulation of fatigue can cause it a bit, too. October is my month off, and I can tell you, for that first week or so, I just feel pretty crap all round, bit depressed and low motivation for things. It seems to pass after the first week and I become a "normal" person once again