Every single training session that builds growth and strength causes fatigue.
With hard training frequent enough to cause the best gains fatigue doesn’t have a chance to completely diminish from the previous session. That means that fatigue accumulates over time.
Then cumulative fatigue is high enough, it can:
- disrupt technique
- cause a decrease in how much muscle and strength each session builds
- cause an increase in injury risk
Signs of high fatigue
- Trouble hitting good technique (but can be caused by different reasons, so pair it with other signs below).
- Workouts feel very tough, and at the end of a session you are exhausted.
- You are getting a bit intimidated by your workouts, and your desire to train super hard is notably down from usual.
- You are hitting PRs (personal records) on your lifts, but they are much tougher to hit within the last 1-2 weeks than usual.
- Your technique is starting to get a bit iffy, and you feel a bit less coordinated and smooth in your lifting than usual.
How to address high fatigue
Do a deload week.