Health – Sport injuries – overload or recovery?

I’m writing this from a hotel room in Guangzhou, China, where I’m with the Tall Blacks ahead of their game against China. After the 11 hour long haul flight from Auckland, and as the team is settled, I’m reminded that my column is due. Fitting, really, because lately I’ve been discussing with athletes the fine line between overload and underrecovery. Whether you’re a weekend warrior, a gymgoer, or an elite athlete, the question isn’t just how much you train, but how well you recover.

Take runners. An overload injury such or shin splints is often blamed on “too much running.” However, if that were the only cause, why can some athletes tolerate 160km per week while others break down after just a few jogs? Yes, rapid increases in training load are a known risk. But recently, recovery – or rather underrecovery – has been recognised as a major factor in both injury and illness.

So what is recovery? It’s more than a day off training. I ask athletes about sleep quality and quantity, hydration, nutrition, hormonal balance, stress levels, and even screen time.

Today, exercise is a choice, but so is recovery. Our ancestors didn’t stay up doomscrolling until 1am. Their bodies were primed for rest by firelight and natural rhythms. Ironically, modern life often undermines recovery.

Think about sleep. There was no social media keeping our predecessors awake until exhaustion. The fire flickered, the cave darkened, and the body rested. Today, we have poorer sleep in our modern beds than they did on hard ground, simply because our brains are overstimulated. Poor quality rest is one of the most overlooked contributors to both injury and illness.

Nutrition and hydration tell a similar story. Modern life on the run means skipped meals, poor hydration, and hormonal dysregulation. I’ve seen athletes with bone density issues, fertility concerns, and immune suppression, not because they trained too much, but because they recovered too little. Add to that the constant stress of modern living as our caveman brain reacts to global crises we can’t control. Stress hormones surge, recovery stalls, and the body breaks down.

In the clinic, I’ve started using a questionnaire to help athletes recognize the many components of underrecovery. Awareness is the first step to change. Here in China, we’ve encouraged players to nap, hydrate, and spend time away from screens before training. These small choices matter. Recovery isn’t passive; it’s active, intentional, and just as important as the training itself.

The reality is, overload and underrecovery are two sides of the same coin. If you’re frustrated by recurring injuries or those nagging bouts of illness that keep derailing your progress, the solution may be simpler than you think. Better sleep routines, consistent hydration, balanced meals, and less late night screen time aren’t luxuries – they’re the hidden training sessions that protect your body and mind. In the end, choosing recovery is choosing resilience.