Body on Fire

Imagine standing on the edge of victory, only to find your legs giving out beneath you. You’ve trained, sacrificed, and pushed beyond your limits, yet something is holding you back from winning.

This was the reality for Matthew, a high-performing athlete and now personal trainer, as he battled the invisible enemy—burnout.

Burnout cast a persistent shadow over his athletic journey, impacting his physical performance and forcing him to reevaluate his strategies as an athlete.

Wrestling with Reality

Matthew’s first encounter with burnout was during his high school wrestling days. “Influenced heavily by my coaches, teammates, and successful champions in the sport, I believed in the mantra of outworking others."

Like many athletes, the expectation was to relentlessly grind, assuming the more you pushed yourself, the better your overall performance would be in competition.

Despite his passion, Matt found himself frustrated with the results and overwhelmed by his training schedule.

“I couldn't maintain the level of high performance and capacity I desired, which was also expected by my coaches.”

“Initially, I thought this was a mental block and that I was just being weak and needed to work harder,” he explained. “But I soon realized that my greatest opponent was myself, not my endurance.”

High-Intensity Can Equal Exhaustion

Throughout high school, Matt pushed himself with high-intensity workouts, constantly adding volume and intensity. At first, this approach worked well for him.

“I improved dramatically, transforming from an average athlete to one with an impressive record. However, eventually, my performance plummeted.”

His body couldn't keep up, sending signals of exhaustion that he ignored. “I thought more effort and intensity were the solutions, but I was dead wrong.”

Matt explained that the progress he was seeing was borrowed, leading to energy debt and a steep decline.

“The volume of my training became unsustainable, hitting me like a blade.”

Personality and Patterns

Matthew realized that something had to change. He learned his personality type played a significant role in how he was training and experiencing burnout as an athlete.

“I repeatedly fell into the same patterns, trying to cheat time with more intensive training.”

Realizing that his previous strategies were ineffective, he shifted his focus to a new way of training. From ages 21 to 24, Matthew dedicated himself to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) training.

He eventually learned that reducing his sessions and increasing his physical preparation days led to a dramatic improvement in his performance and a significant reduction in daily pain.

This change marked a crucial turning point. A pivotal shift occurred when he realized that prioritizing not only his physical but also emotional health improved his overall performance.

The Revelation: Quality Over Quantity

Emphasizing quality over quantity, he adopted a personalized approach to training versus a one-size-fits-all method. He focused on his entire body, including his mental state and range, rather than just building up his muscles. As a result, he found himself becoming stronger, and his performance improved.

“Weighted stretches and gymnastics principles, inspired by Christopher Sommer on the Tim Ferriss Podcast, revolutionized my training.”

Seeking the help and ideas of others, Matthew realized that everyone is different, and the burnout he was feeling was the result of an unrealistic work ethic and his body resisting the intensity of the training.

Less volume and intensity, combined with proper technique and more realistic expectations, helped decrease joint pain, enhance his grappling skills, and provide him with a healthier perspective on his body’s performance.

Personal Lessons and Limits

“Burnout taught me invaluable lessons about the importance of personalized training and respecting my body's limits. I discovered that what works for others doesn't always work for me.”

By prioritizing health and focusing on mechanics versus quantity, Matt rediscovered joy and progress in his athletic journey. This experience inspired him to become a personal trainer and help others.

He explained, “My experiences and mistakes have shaped better strategies, and now I help everyday people avoid similar pitfalls and burnout.”

Understanding and working not only with physiology but also psychology can transform a person into a better, happier athlete. Matthew continues to share his story to help others.

Burnout and Its Lesson

Burnout can sneak up and affect many different areas of our lives, whether personal, professional, or physical, as it did with Matthew.

A common denominator for everyone experiencing burnout is the need to re-evaluate how we are approaching our experiences. As humans, we cannot constantly push ourselves to exhaustion and consistently expect exceptional results.

As Matthew discovered, changing your strategy and educating yourself on new ways to approach burnout can offer ideas and solutions that can change your perspective and help you avoid living in it.

Visit Matthew’s community for help with combating burnout through physical exercise at Jiron’s Gym on Facebook.