I usually take a more passive approach. I say that until someone complains about performance increases, i stay out of their life. Some people just love this stuff so much that they want to do it ALL the time.
As soon as they complain about performance (My deadlift wont go up or my mile time is getting slower…) i step in and say “If you don’t listen to me, you won’t improve.

Quite honestly, some people don’t want to be helped and for some its a lost cause. At the same time if you care about keeping this person around long term in the gym you have to exert your training thunder and lay down the law. You can’t control what people do outside the gym so you have to help them understand why what they are doing is wrong. Every situation is different here so you have to choose your approach carefully. Sometimes challenging people to NOT train works but like i said each case is individual. Also, using the 50 mile expert works too. Standby for a post on the 50 mile expert.

Dutch

I can definitely pick out 3 points from when I was overtrained. I use to hate rest days. But now I love them. I workout just for the rest days.

I have a scenario and question for you… You have an athlete at your box that is showing signs of overtraing. You take him/her aside and express your concerns and the risks involved with overtraining. You even set up a schedule for the athlete to follow that would help to minimize the risk of overtraining. The athlete seems to be responsive to what you are saying and takes a day off. But comes back the day after the rest day for a WOD then a few hours later does a WOD on his/her own elsewhere. This athlete continues to train 6 days a week with doing 2 WODs per day for 4 or 5 days and 1 WOD on the sixth day. You have talked to this athlete, who is gifted and possesses great skills, several times since the initial conversation and get to the point that you are so frustrated that you just want to say, “F#ck it” and turn your back. But you can’t find it in yourself to do that.

If I owned the box that is referenced above I would not hesitate to instruct the athlete that he/she is not allowed back to the gym until he/she is rested. I am not the owner and bit I have put the buzz in his ear.

My question is… What would be the best way to deal with this athlete?