An increase in resting heart rate is a sign of overtraining.

• A. Decrease in resting heart rate
• B. Increase in resting heart rate
• C. No change in resting heart rate
• D. Fluctuating resting heart rate

Answer: (B)

An increasing resting heart rate reflects that the body isn’t recovering well from training. When training load outpaces recovery, the autonomic nervous system shifts toward sympathetic dominance and stress hormones rise, which keeps the heart rate higher even at rest. This rise is a practical flag that recovery is insufficient and training stress may be tipping toward overtraining. In contrast, a lower resting heart rate usually signals improved fitness and better conditioning, no change suggests adequate adaptation, and a lot of day-to-day fluctuation isn’t a clear sign of overtraining—persistent higher resting heart rate is the pattern most associated with excessive training stress.