Achieve Post-Exercise Recovery with These 5 Tips

It is very important for a workout regimen to be supplemented with sufficient body recovery to ensure replenishment of your bones and muscle fibers and tissues. Doing so can allow you to prevent injuries, improve muscle endurance and gains, and most important of all, help you engage in intense physical activity for longer durations.

However, as enthusiastic as new trainers are about excelling in their workouts, they can be negligent about obtaining proper body recovery that makes them vulnerable to experiencing muscle cramps, sprain injuries, and delayed onset muscle soreness. In this post, we offer 5 post-exercise recovery tips that should be incorporated in your fitness routine.

Cool-Down Stretches

Spending a few minutes of performing stretches after ending your workout can be really important for relieving stress off your joints and muscle tissues. Many overlook the importance of doing stretches after lifting weights or other kind of resistance or cardio exercises. However, cool-down exercises can be a great deterrent to experiencing muscle soreness and cramps and enable your body to recover instantly.

The type of stretches should depend on what muscles you have worked. On days you train your legs, for instance, you will need to stretch your hamstrings, glutes, and glutes. Whereas, on days you train your arms, you will need to stretch your shoulders, arms, and back.

Sleep

Sleep is perhaps your best answer to replenishing lost energy and fatigued muscles and joints. A long, quality, and uninterrupted sleep can give your body enough time to restore your emotional and physical health, allowing you to become energized to indulge in intense training the following day. Be sure to get at least 7 hours of sleep on a daily basis. Otherwise, you body will fail to produce enough glucose to keep you active throughout the day, and cause you to crave more sugar-rich foods.

Post-Exercise Supplements

The mere mention of the word ‘supplements’ may be nuisance for those who wish to keep their fitness journey as free from expensive products as possible. However, if you are keen on seeing fast and efficient recovery, consuming post-exercise supplements, such as whey protein, can be highly effective. Whey protein helps to nourish tired muscles and gives them an impetus to grow and shed body fat. Other post-exercise supplements, such as Creatine and Beta-Alanine, can equally be important in allowing the body to recover quickly.

Stay Hydrated

The more intense your workouts, the more you sweat and drain water from your body, leaving you at greater risk of dehydration. Without drinking enough water, you cannot hope to stay active and allow your muscles tissues and fibers to restore strength. Your body not only needs more water, but also electrolytes. Be sure to drink plenty of water after a workout session, or sports nutrition drinks to prevent muscle weakness.

Get a Massage

A massage once every week can be ideal for alleviating muscle soreness, calming nerves, and relaxing your joints and tendons. Muscle soreness is part-and-parcel of seeing good fitness gains. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t help yourself to a fully body massage to help minimize the risks of cramps and other kinds of muscle soreness.

While exercise efficiency is crucial, body maintenance and recovery can be equally important, if not more. Implementing the aforementioned tips can be critical to helping you avoid injuries and improve productivity in your workouts.

Sources

http://www.mensfitness.com/training/the-6-best-ways-to-recover-from-your-workout

https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/8-ways-to-maximize-your-post-workout-recovery.html