ABSTRACT
Overtraining develops because the indicators have not been detected over a long period of time and because athletes and coaches have not been aware of the symptoms, have not paid attention, and/or have not linked single indicators to the overall situation the athlete is experiencing. It is easy to overlook indicators considering the time schedule of athletes in the treadmill of sport. For example, Helge Meeuw, five-times German swimming champion, in 2006 described his daily routine before the German Championships:
I get up at 6:30 a.m. From 7 a.m. until 8:45 a.m. I have water training at the sport school. After that I have a quick breakfast to be at the hospital at 10 a.m. where I am doing my internship. At 3:30 p.m. I head off to the sport school for strength training or physiotherapy, followed by additional water training from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. At 9 p.m. I am finally at home. In the beginning of this program I felt like I was in a coma. However, I took the day off before the German Championships. The recovery during this period gave me the kick to perform well.
(Körber, 2006, p. 22) Three elements of this example stand out: (a) the challenge of balancing different tasks and responsibilities (e.g., training, work duties), (b) self-awareness, and (c) well-structured planning. The quote reads as if the recovery day was planned in his schedule and he made a conscious decision that he needed it, because he had some sort of monitoring system that allowed him to judge how he was physically experiencing the effects of his hectic life.