Fatigue ≠ fitness

The Aussie track cycling athletes will up and quit their training session if they send a record lap time.

Why?
Because they just took their body and performance to a level beyond the norm.
That's the razors edge of adaptation and injury.
It's incredibly smart (and disciplined) to go home, smash a good feed and take a nap to maximise the adaptation and ensure full recovery.

You're like nodding your head, yet we don't always see the same approach in fitness.
The marketing, and associated behaviour by the general population is more about how long and how much you can do, not how well you do.

Many of the people I work with LOVE to train. It's a big part of their life, it helps them manage stress, it builds mental resilience, and they enjoy the challenge of working through discomfort.
Nothing at all wrong with that.
Just be aware of how easily this approach can slip into martyrdom, where you don't feel satisfied unless you're suffering.

martyr: **a person who sacrifices something of great value and especially life itself for the sake of principle**
What are you sacrificing in your life for the sake of feeling like you trained more than anyone else??

It's interesting that the opposite definition of martyr includes words like, heretic, renouncer and renegade.
Often used negatively, but in this case I say embrace them and train smarter not harder.
Be a renegade.