Over training is always a hot topic amongst cyclists, generally speaking the higher level the cyclist the more prominent the topic becomes for obvious reasons.

As a coach, the question that always presents itself is - How much load can a particular person tolerate and still improve - both physically and mentally.

Overtraining is defined, in the broadest sense, as a steady decline in performance despite an increase in training load

It is worth reading that statement a few times, as it will help you rule out over training in most cases - for example;

1. You may feel very tired and heavy legged but are still performing and making the power you would expect to make

2. You may see that power numbers over a particular duration are down one day but come back two days later to normal levels

In both the above cases you can rule out over training - you may be over reaching but not over training. Over reaching is simply a case of temporary fatigue brought about by training - in most cases this is a good thing and is essentail to porgress. If you never over reach then you will never get fitter - imagine a competitive high jumper who never raised the bar above a certain point in training...

A single poor performance or a single off day that is either preceeded or followed by a better day, is almost never going to be a result of over training but rather poor planning or mismanaged expectations (or other issues such as not enough food or poor pacing)

The issue we face with over reaching is often a case of mental sabotage..

An athlete faced with feeling fatigued after a few days or weeks of hard training may begin to think he or she is doing too much, and start to question the training load or the direction of the training. Combine this with a few well meaning cycling buddies who are ready to chime in and you have a crisis of confidence.

If an athlete is training with a power meter, then they have the ability to quickly see when they are over reaching and take decisive action - instead of staying at home because they have heavy legs, they can go out and start the session and make a judgement call based on whether they are making the power or not. If they are, then they carry on and if they are not then they go home and rest or take an easy day. In this way an athlete can navigate through a tough patch with the knowledge that they are doing the right thing for their body, mind and their training.

If a session feels harder despite the same power output then this is most likely an indicator of a higher level of fatigue, but there is generally no reason why the session should not be completed and the benefit to the athlete reaped - the important thing is for the athlete and or coach to be aware of the higher level of fatigue and factor it in to the next few sessions.

Those most susceptible to the issue of thinking hard training is over training are mostly athletes who have never completed a structured training programme that involves a graduated increase in load, and the asscoiated fatigue that come with this There is a general misconception that fatigue of any sort is a bad thing and that all athletes need a week of rest every 4 weeks - in most cases athletes over estimate their ability to recover and perform well in a fairly short timeframe.

I usually find that once an athlete has made it through a tough and graduated build, and has reaped the fitness rewards that follow, that the connection is made, and the light comes on - but many do not make it through for a few cycles and may either fall away or take an easier route.

I can honestly say that I have only come across possibly 2 athletes who were either over trained or close to it over the past 6 years, but have come across many who believe that they were over trained despite evidence to the contrary.

Cycling is a hard sport, both mentally and physically, it is also a sport full of self appointed  experts with lots of opinions  that they will glasly pass to anybody who will listen - this is a dangerous combination for the rider committed to getting the best out of the time he or she has.