More training is not always better: supercompensation explained

You love training. Maybe you are in the gym 5, 6 or even 7 days per week.

It feels logical. More training means more results, right?

Not always.

At some point you may notice:

• You feel tired all the time
• Your numbers do not go up
• Small aches stay longer
• Motivation drops

This is where supercompensation comes in.

What is supercompensation?

Supercompensation is a fancy word for a simple idea.

Every training session is a small stress for your body.

1. You train. You use energy and create small damage in muscle and tissue.
2. Right after training your body is actually a bit weaker and tired.
3. Then you rest, eat and sleep. Your body repairs the damage.
4. Your body does not only repair. It prepares for the next training and comes back a bit stronger than before.

That extra bit is supercompensation. That is where progress happens.

Important: supercompensation only happens if you give your body enough time and space to recover.

If you train hard again while your body is still in the "tired and not yet recovered" phase, you do not get the benefit. You only stack more fatigue on top of fatigue.

What happens if you train 6–7 days per week with little rest?

For most people, 6 or 7 hard CrossFit style sessions per week is a lot. Especially if you also have:

• A job
• Kids
• Normal life stress
• Less than 7–8 hours of sleep

If you push too often, your body can respond like this:

• Performance goes down or stays stuck
• You feel more tired outside the gym
• You sleep worse or wake up often
• You get more small injuries or nagging pain
• You get sick more often
• You feel low in mood or more irritable

You are working very hard, but your body never reaches the supercompensation phase. It is always catching up.

So you feel like you are doing "more", but your body gets "less" out of it.

How much training makes sense for most people?

For many people at a gym like CrossFit Leiden, this is a very good starting point:

• 3 to 5 training sessions per week
• Plus daily normal movement, like cycling, walking, playing with your kids, taking the stairs

With 3 to 5 sessions per week you can:

• Train hard enough to give your body a strong signal
• Recover enough to actually get stronger and fitter
• Still have energy for work, family and life

More is not automatically better. Smart and consistent is better.

When can 6–7 training days per week make sense?

There are people who can handle 6 or 7 training sessions per week for a period of time. Often that looks like this:

So yes, 6–7 times can work, but only if recovery is almost like a "part time job" next to training.

And what if you are a parent, have a busy job or sleep poorly?

Let us look at a few real life situations.

1. Parent, busy job, broken nights

• One or more kids
• Full time job
• Sleep is 6 to 7 hours and not always deep

In this case, 6 or 7 hard sessions per week is almost never a good idea.

A better plan:

• 3 CrossFit style sessions per week
• Maybe 1 extra light session, like mobility or an easy run or walk

Your life already gives a lot of stress. Training must make you stronger, not finish you off.

2. Young, no kids, flexible job

• Good sleep schedule
• Less stress
• Some control over your day

Here it can be possible to train 5 or 6 times per week, if:

• You mix heavy and light days
• You eat enough
• You listen to early warning signs like heavy fatigue, bad mood, worse sleep

Even then it is smart to plan a lighter week every now and then.

3. High stress job, big responsibility

• Long days
• A lot of mental pressure
• Many screens, meetings and decisions

Your brain and nervous system are already working hard.

If you add 6–7 very intense sessions on top, your body can go into "always on" mode. That means:

• Harder to relax
• Harder to sleep
• Higher heart rate
• Less progress

Here, 3–4 quality sessions per week are usually much better than 6 average sessions.

How do you know you are doing too much?

Some signals that you may need more rest:

• Your lifts, times and scores are not improving for several weeks
• You feel more pain than usual
• You drag yourself to training, instead of looking forward to it
• You feel tired all day, even with coffee
• Your resting heart rate is higher than normal
• You get sick more often

If you recognise yourself in many of these, "more rest" is often the next smart step, not "more work".

How to get the most from your training

A few simple rules.

1. Plan your rest like you plan your WOD

Rest days are not "lost days". They are the days where your body does the building work.

Without rest there is no supercompensation. So put rest days in your calendar on purpose.

2. Treat sleep as your number one recovery tool

Supplements, massages and gadgets are all fine. But nothing beats:

• 7 to 9 hours of sleep
• In a dark, cool room
• With a fixed time to go to bed and to wake up

3. Eat enough, especially if you train often

If you train hard but eat too little, your body cannot repair and grow. Think:

• Protein with every meal
• Enough total calories
• Carbs around training for energy

4. Mix heavy and light sessions

Not every day needs to be a "PR day".

• Some days you push
• Some days you practice
• Some days you just move and feel good

This is not weak. This is exactly how strong people train for the long term.

5. Stop comparing yourself to social media

Many people you see online:

• Have a different life
• Maybe work in fitness
• Maybe train twice per day
• Maybe do not have a busy family life

Your context is different. Your training plan should match your life, not someone else their highlight reel.

6. Talk to your coach

At CrossFit Leiden, we can help you look at:

• How often you train now
• How you sleep
• How stressed your life is
• What your goals are

Often one or two small changes in your week are enough to feel better and progress again.

Summary

• Supercompensation means your body comes back a bit stronger after training, but only if it gets enough rest.
• If you train too often and too hard, you collect fatigue instead of progress.
• For most busy people, 3 to 5 sessions per week is a great range.
• 6 or 7 sessions can work in special situations, with very good sleep, nutrition and low stress, and with smart planning.
• Listening to your body and being honest about your life situation is more important than chasing a number of sessions.

You do not need to train every day to get results. You need the right mix of training and recovery.

If you are not sure what is right for you, talk to one of the coaches. We are happy to help you create a week plan that fits your life and still makes you stronger, fitter and happier.