A 60-year-old man who used to work out for 8 hours a day, walking, jogging, and doing hundreds of situps, developed severe degenerative arthritis and is barely able to move because of the pain.

They say too much of a good thing is usually bad for you, and apparently, exercise is no exception. Chinese newspaper Shanxy Daily recently featured the tragic story of a 60-year-old man from Henan who only discovered exercising in his early 40s, only to start overdoing it to such an extent that he pretty much ruined his joints. The Zhengzhou-based man reportedly exercised about two and a half hours every morning, walking, running, and doing pull-ups, then swam for about two hours and then did 800 sit-ups a day, plus hundreds of push-ups, and some badminton to top it all off. Unfortunately, his body eventually gave in and he started experiencing severe pain in his joints.

Photo: Getty Images/Unsplash+

It’s unclear whether the man followed this extreme training regimen daily, which seems impossible unless he was a fitness instructor or unemployed, or if he exercised up to 8 hours per day. Regardless, he has been going at it for about 20 years, until a few weeks ago when his knees and elbows became unbearably painful, to the point where he could no longer move.

The fitness fanatic’s family took him to the Luoyang Orthopedic Hospital in Henan Province after his joint pain became excruciating, and the doctors there diagnosed him with severe degenerative arthritis, hyperplasia, and degeneration of the elbow joint, all caused by excessive exercise.

Photo: Sporlab

Lian Jie, the director of the Luoyang Orthopedic Hospital took to Weibo to remind the general public that exercise should be moderate and that people should start with easy exercises and find a sport they enjoy. For most people, exercising 3 to 5 times a week, for just 1 or 1.5 hours is optimal.