Brian Cushing and Overtrained Athlete Syndrome

[Auggie]

Associated Press / August 9th, 2010

HOUSTON -- The Houston Texans asked the NFL to reduce or rescind the four-game suspension given to star linebacker Brian Cushing on Monday, saying he has a unique medical condition stemming from something called overtrained athlete syndrome.

Cushing described the condition after Monday morning's practice. He said the syndrome can trigger hormonal spikes after breaks in training, explaining why he would have tested positive for a fertility drug last September -- a drug he said he never took.

"I think that's the final diagnosis we came up with," he said, "and a lot of doctors have supported why this has happened."

SNIP

Cushing was suspended for the first four games this season after testing positive last year for HCG, a drug on the league's banned substance list. Cushing says he never took the drug, which can be used to restart testosterone production after a steroid cycle, and has no idea how it got into his body.

MORE: http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/trainingcamp10/news/story?id=5449113

:eyes:

[joeybee12]

1. Wow!

He must think people are really stupid.

[JonLP24]

2. I never heard of the syndrome before

but over-training is unhealthy. What it is, is when you don't have enough time to recover. You actually lose strength if you return to the weight room to soon. This applies in other areas as well such as running. You need time to recover. There are so many problems, mentally, and physically, over-training can cause. I just told you the most basic problem. I'm not sure how it effects HCG levels in the body where I also see it is a marker for tumor. That is one possibility I read. I've read Cushing took a urine test so those kind of tests are more likely to have false positives and a lot of those occur just because of body chemistry. For example kidney disease can lead to a false positive test result for cocaine.

Ok what I've learned since that paragraph. hcG levels are used to try to detect pregnancy early. hcG is a glycoprotein hormone produced in pregnancy. Marker for tumor(said that already). In steroids it restores testosterone production. Now I have no idea what conditions would cause a false positive or what other ways hcG can naturally produce in the body. I'm familiar with over-training but I don't exactly know what it does to testosterone or hormone levels in the body but over-training does effect the body and mind in many ways that aren't good.

Well not sure what to think of the article. I'll follow the issue closely.

[JonLP24]

4. Some more info

<snip>

If sufficient rest is not included in a training program then regeneration cannot occur and performance plateaus. If this imbalance between excess training and inadequate rest persists then performance will decline. Overtraining can best be defined as the state where the athlete has been repeatedly stressed by training to the point where rest is no longer adequate to allow for recovery. The "overtraining syndrome" is the name given to the collection of emotional, behavioral, and physical symptoms due to overtraining that has persisted for weeks to months. Athletes and coaches also know it as "burnout" or "staleness." This is different from the day to day variation in performance and post exercise tiredness that is common in conditioned athletes. Overtraining is marked by cumulative exhaustion that persists even after recovery periods.

The most common symptom is fatigue. This may limit workouts and may be present at rest. The athlete may also become moody, easily irritated, have altered sleep patterns, become depressed, or lose the competitive desire and enthusiasm for the sport. Some will report decreased appetite and weight loss. Physical symptoms include persistent muscular soreness, increased frequency of viral illnesses, and increased incidence of injuries.

There have been several clinical studies done on athletes with the overtraining syndrome. Exercise physiologic, psychological, and biochemical laboratory testing have been done. Findings in these studies have shown decreased performance in exercise testing, decreased mood state, and, in some, increased cortisol levels -- the body's "stress" hormone. A decrease in testosterone, altered immune status, and an increase in muscular break down products have also been identified. Medically, the overtraining syndrome is classified as a neuro-endocrine disorder. The normal fine balance in the interaction between the autonomic nervous system and the hormonal system is disturbed and athletic "jet lag" results. The body now has a decreased ability to repair itself during rest. Heaping more workouts onto this unbalanced system only worsens the situation. Additional stress in the form of difficulties at work or personal life also contributes.

It appears that there are two forms of the syndrome. The sympathetic form is more common in sprint type sports and the parasympathetic form is more common in endurance sports. The results from various measurements taken during exercise physiologic testing differ between the two forms, but decreased overall performance and increased perceived fatigue are similar. In the parasympathetic form there may be a lower heart rate for a given workload. Athletes training with a heart rate monitor may notice that they cannot sustain the workout at their usual "set point." Fatigue takes over and prematurely terminates the workout. Regulation of glucose can become altered and the athlete may experience symptoms of hypoglycemia during exercise.

http://www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/overtraining.html

[TZ]

7. This biologist is VERY skeptical

In fact, to me, what is MORE likely is while he might indeed be addicted to exercise (which is legitimate, some people do suffer from working out too much) I think its more likely that he took steroids to help him recover from this exhausting training. The only way I can see this actually being the truth is if they find hermaphroditic structues or genetics in other words if he is XXY instead of XY. Or if he has some kind of basic ovary. Otherwise, men just don't have the hormonal structure to produce hcG. The pituitary does not manufacture it IIRC.
I take it back: He wouldn't need to have an ovary, he'd need to be pregnant.Its ONLY produced by the placenta. His argument is complete bullshit.

[JonLP24]

8. Thanks

I learned as much as I reasonably could about hcG and how it is naturally produced. The two ways I found is if you're pregnant and it is a marker for some tumors or cancers.

What I was wondering if over-training (if he is telling the truth) would damage internal organs or something that would cause a false positive or if that caused him to somehow produce hcG.

Thanks for your perspective. I couldn't find anything myself to support his argument but was willing to let the process play out because I thought he *might* be telling the truth. :hi:

[TZ]

9. here's a few other reasons why his arguments are sketchy

Pregnancy tests (urine tests) are pretty accurate on picking up hcg. A false positive is unlikely, and I'm betting a initial test of positive will prompt another test to confirm. I can't see how damage to an organ could cause it to produce a hormone thats so foreign to the system...its just not how the body works..The hcg that can be produced by tumors...I'm thinking its pretty low levels- and the tumor would have to be pretty noticeable--he'd be too sick to play most likely.

[Ex Lurker]

11. I believe overtraining caused me to blow out a hamstring in 2006

it took more than a year to recover. Your body is going to get the rest it needs one way or another...

[Poiuyt]

3. And I'm a sex addict

[KamaAina]

5. Isn't this the same thing Manny-Being-Manny took?

:eyes:

[JonLP24]

6. Exact same thing

[Poiuyt]

10. OAS is increasingly becoming a problem in sports

OAS is increasingly becoming a problem in sports, especially as it pertains to the all-time home run list. Barry Bonds had OAS, too. Look what it did to his head.

Vic Ketchman
http://www.jaguars.com/news/article.aspx?id=9138