If exercise does not make you feel energized, you are doing something wrong. However, if you feel lethargic and completely exhausted after your workout, you are certainly not alone. Why? You ask. It depends on many factors actually. You burn calories through exercise but sometimes you push your body to its limits. Unless you drink more fluids and provide your body with enough nutrients and rest, you are going to feel tired in your next workout session. Let's find out more about why you may be feeling tired after exercise and what you can do to fix the issue.
Reasons You Are Tired After Working Out
Your body needs time to recover from all the stress you put it through, and not listening to your body can cause injuries and other complications. Here are some details to help you answer, "Why am I so tired after working out?"
1. You Are Not Eating Right
You burn calories and sugar while working out, and you are going to feel exhausted if your blood sugar levels are too low. You can prevent this issue by having a pre-workout meal. Ideally, you should be having a high-carb, low fat and moderate-protein snack 1-3 hours before working out. Anything like a banana, juice, oatmeal, or low-fat yogurt will work just fine.
You can also help stabilize blood sugar levels by having a small meal within 20 minutes of finishing your workout – a snack with a 3:1 ration of carbs and protein usually works great to restore glycogen. Yogurt with granola, trail milk, and chocolate milk are some nice post-workout meal options.
2. You Are Dehydrated
Not drinking enough water before, during, and after your workout can also lead to heat exhaustion, muscle fatigue, and diminished energy levels. Weighing yourself before and after your workout session helps monitor your hydration level. Similarly, the color of urine may also tell about how hydrated your body is.
Be sure to drink 8-12oz of fluid 15 minutes before you exercise and then drink 3oz of water every 15 minutes while working out. It is also important to drink water after you have completed your workout session. Check your weight before exercise and then drink 20-24oz for each pound of weight lost after exercise.
3. You Do Not Warm Up Before Exercise
Wondering "Why am I so tired after working out?" Not spending enough time in warming up your body increases chances of injuries and also leads to exercise-induced bronchoconstriction. This condition causes symptoms such as coughing, shortness of breath, fatigue and chest tightness. It is important to warm up for 5-10 minutes before exercise to avoid these symptoms. Your doctor may also prescribe medications that you need to take about 15 minutes before you exercise.
4. You Do Not Get Enough Sleep
Not getting enough shut-eye is also going to play a big role in how you feel after working out. Your sleep quality will depend heavily on how you manage stress in your life. You are not going to get a good night's sleep if you are under stress, and this is going to affect your energy levels. You may even feel tired in the middle of a workout. You are only going to make matters worse if you continue to exercise hard even when your life is already quite stressful. That stress accumulates over time and causes all sorts of problems, including low energy levels during and after working out.
5. You Have Asthma and Allergies
Why am I so tired after working out? You ask. Your allergies may have a role to play here. The problem is that you are going to feel tired when you cannot get enough oxygen, and this is a common issue for people with allergies and asthma. It is a good idea to talk to your doctor if you experience wheezing, coughing, shortness of breath, or a tight chest during or after working out. Your doctor is going to help you with how you can open up your airways in the gym.
6. You Are Suffering from Anemia
It means that you do not have enough oxygen-carrying red blood cells in your body. This limits the supply of oxygen to your cells, which in turn will affect your performance in the gym. You are likely to have this problem if you are on a low-iron diet. People with anemia usually experience problems like dizziness, insomnia, pale skin, leg cramps, and easy bruising.
7. You Have Thyroid Issues
You will feel tired if your thyroid glands are not functioning properly. Low thyroid function can affect your energy levels in a negative way. An underactive thyroid gland is not going to release enough thyroid hormone, which in turn cause low energy levels as well as depression, weight gain, and muscle pain.
Tips to Help
Why am I so tired after working out? You already know what factors can affect how you feel after working out. Here are some tips to help you feel better.
- Be sure to give your body enough time to recover. Taking a couple of days off from exercise may help.
- Be sure to get enough sleep every night. Your body needs 7-9 hours of sleep to help repair muscles.
- Increase your workout intensity gradually and do not start lifting too much, too soon.
- Talk to your doctor if you have other symptoms along with tiredness, as this may indicate a serious underlying condition such as mononucleosis or chronic fatigue syndrome.
- Always listen to your body and ensure that you do not exercise when you are feeling very low at energy or have pain in the body. Pushing yourself hard even when your body is not responding in the right way can cause serious injuries and other complications.