Enhance Your Post-Workout Recovery
Joe Fleming provides ten easy ways to enhance your post-workout recovery.
Whether you are an avid gym-goer or a fitness newbie, you have dealt with some post-workout muscle soreness at some point in life.
It is not exactly fun to wake up the day after a workout and feel like walking from your bed to the bathroom is impossible. Luckily, you do not have to wait out the soreness. There are many things you can do to speed up your muscle recovery.
If you feel extra sore from your last gym session, keep reading. Below are ten simple tricks to promote faster post-workout recovery and get back to training sooner.
Go to Sleep
If your day is not even over yet and you are already feeling sore from your earlier workout, prioritize a good night's sleep.
When you are in a deep sleep, your body goes to work repairing the damage that occurred during your workout. If you are not sleeping well, you will likely experience prolonged soreness and slower recovery.
You can also help promote recovery by taking a short nap after your workout. If it is early in the day, try lying down for twenty minutes for a quick power nap. It should not hinder your ability to fall asleep when nighttime rolls around, and you will be able to jumpstart your muscle recovery.
Drink Plenty of Water
If you are dehydrated, your body will have difficulty repairing itself after a workout. Exercising when you are thirsty will also cause more damage to your muscles.
Be sure to drink plenty of water before, during, and after your workouts. Do not worry too much about drinking sports drinks like Gatorade. Although they contain electrolytes, these drinks are also typically loaded with sugar. You do not need anything besides plain water unless you are doing intense endurance workouts.
Wrap it Up
Applying compression to your muscles can help improve blood flow and speed up recovery. It may lessen the soreness you feel after a challenging workout.
You can use special compression garments, elastic bandages, or knee sleeves designed to reduce knee inflammation. All these products work the same way, so you don't have to worry about buying a particular style or brand. Use the one that is most comfortable and affordable for you.
Eat Carbs and Protein
Plan your post-workout meal to ensure optimal muscle recovery. Generally speaking, a meal with a 3:1 ratio of carbohydrates to protein. For example, you might eat 20 grams of protein and 60 grams of carbohydrates.
Sticking to this ratio as best you can helps you get amino acids and glucose to your muscles, which promotes recovery and reduces soreness.
Some examples of a good post-workout meal include:
- Chicken with white or brown rice
- Protein shake with fruit
- Steak with a sweet potato or baked potato
Stretch
Stretching after your workout can help loosen your muscles and send nutrient—and oxygen-rich blood to the muscles that need it most.
It is also helpful to stretch on days off from the gym. This ensures that your muscles receive more blood and nutrients so they can continue repairing themselves.
Head to a yoga class or do some stretches while watching TV or taking breaks from your desk at work.
Drink Some Tart Cherry Juice
Tart cherry juice is loaded with antioxidants. Antioxidants help reduce inflammation by preventing oxidative damage caused by free radicals.
Drinking tart cherry juice after your workouts will help minimize the inflammation caused by damaged muscles. This will speed up the recovery process and help reduce the pain and discomfort you might feel after a challenging training session.
Do you not like the taste of tart cherry juice? Try taking a tart cherry supplement for the same benefits.
Skip Happy Hour
You might want to reconsider if you plan on going to happy hour with your friends after your workout.
Drinking alcohol after a workout slows down the body's recovery processes. It is because alcohol is a toxin. When you drink it, all of your body's resources go toward metabolizing the alcohol and getting it out -- recovery will have to wait until all the alcohol is gone.
Alcohol can also cause dehydration, which, as you already know, is not suitable for muscle recovery.
Eat Plenty of Potassium
Potassium is an important electrolyte that helps promote healthy heart function and muscle contraction. If you are deficient in potassium, you are more prone to experiencing muscle cramps, especially after a challenging workout.
As with most nutrients, it is better to get potassium from your food. Bananas and potatoes are both excellent sources of potassium. Try incorporating them into your post-workout meal. You can also take potassium supplements but try to use them as a last resort.
Keep Moving
Contrary to popular belief, "rest day" does not mean "lay on the couch and do nothing day." Aim for "active rest days" instead of total couch potato days. You do not have to hit the gym on an active rest day. But it would help if you tried to get out and move.
Go for a walk, do some stretching or mobility drills, or play in the park with your dog. Moving stimulates blood flow and ensures your muscles get the necessary nutrients to recover.
When you are sore, any activity might seem impossible. But, once you get up and move for a few minutes, you will likely feel better than you had if you had been sedentary all day.
Foam Roll
Finally, make foam rolling a part of your active recovery days. Foam rolling helps reduce muscle tension and knots and promotes healthy blood flow to speed up recovery. It is like getting a massage, except it is a lot cheaper!
Page Reference
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- FLEMING, J. (2018) Enhance Your Post-Workout Recovery [WWW] Available from: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/articles/article377.htm [Accessed
About the Author
Joe Fleming is the President at ViveHealth.com. Passionate about healthy lifestyles and living a full life, he enjoys sharing and expressing these interests through his writing. To inspire others and fight ageism, Joe writes to help people of all backgrounds and ages overcome life's challenges. His work ranges from articles on wellness, holistic health, and ageing to social narratives, motivational pieces, and news stories. For Joe, helping others is vital.