Workout plays an important role in our fitness, and if we do not take proper rest or do not give time to our muscles to recover, we will get no benefit from the workout. After all, we do not get fitter from the workout; we get fitter from recovering from training.
Rest and recovery are an essential part of any workout routine. Unfortunately, most people don’t have an after-workout recovery routine. Not getting enough recovery causes to wear and tear and strain on the body and muscles which could lead to severe injuries. Here we have some tips to speed up recovery after any of the workout routines.
What happens when we work out?
While working out, our muscles swell up, and some tissues of muscles get broken. If we do not take proper rest or recover our muscles after a workout, blood clots may occur in the muscles, which could take more than 40-48 hours to recover by themselves. This makes us feel tired and sleepy the next day, and we can’t concentrate on our work.
How to speed up muscle recovery post-workout?
There are many tips to recover your muscles which are described below:
- Drink Fluids
- Eat Healthy Food
- Get Enough Sleep
- Meditate
- Contrast Water Therapy
- Take CBD
During the workout, we lose a large amount of water from our body in sweating. You should drink water, sip by sip after a short period of time during the workout. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends drinking 16 to 24 ounces of water per pound you lose while exercising. Some healthy drinks to keep you hydrated include tart cherry juice, beetroot juice, watermelon juice, and many more.
According to a study by sports medicine in 2012, you should consider fueling your body to rebalance your electrolytes. These are important for the nervous system and help during muscle contraction. Foods with a rich amount of water, protein, carbohydrates, magnesium, potassium help you refill your energy level. It helps to repair your muscle tissues and build your strength. Some healthy food items that you can consume include watermelon, sweet potato, cottage cheese, salmon, eggs, spinach, bananas, and many more.
Sleeping is also a natural process of recovery. During sleep, your body produces growth hormones that help in the natural repair and growth of tissues of the muscles. These hormones are produced during deep sleep, especially when you are in the third stage of sleep, known as non-REM. Not getting enough sleep could lead to hormonal imbalance and chronic pain.
A strenuous workout could lead to stiffness in muscles. Meditation can help. Studies have shown that meditation can help reduce chronic pain and relaxes the muscles. Meditation helps in relaxing your brain and reduces stress. While working out, your cortisol levels may go out of control. Meditation can help guard against it. When the cortisol levels are under control, they help manage pain to speed up recovery.
This therapy includes submerging in hot water and then into cold water. This helps regulate body temperature, stimulates the contraction and dilation of your blood vessels, and changes your heart rate. This can reduce muscle soreness and promotes muscle healing.
Consuming CBD after a workout can do wonders for your body. As soon as you take CBD, it works to support the endocannabinoid system (ECS) and helps your body function properly and effectively. In addition, it possesses anti-inflammatory properties. It relieves the soreness and muscle aches and allows the muscles to heal quickly and become stronger than before. Moreover, if you take CBD after your workout, it can also promote your sound sleeping as it is the best time for your muscles to recover. You can try CBD in any form like edibles, salve, lotion, or water-soluble CBD.
CBD Dosage
The exact dosage of CBD varies from person to person. However, one rule of thumb for the dosage of CBD is consuming 1-6 milligrams of CBD per 10 pounds of body weight. However, as a beginner, you can try consuming 5-10 milligrams per day and increase the dosage gradually until you get relief.
What type of injuries are caused by poor workout technique?
Some common injuries caused by poor workout routine include:
Muscle Sprain
This is one of the common workout injuries. It is the stretching or tearing of the muscle that connects muscle to the bone. This usually occurs in the lower back and back thigh muscles.
Wear and tear of Joints
Wearing and tearing of joints, known as Osteoarthritis, is the most common form of arthritis. It occurs when the protective cartilage in the joints ends. It can damage any joint but most commonly affect the joints in the hands, feet, hips, and spine. Though it occurs with ageing, wrong exercise postures could also lead to this injury.
Muscle Injury in Wrist
A momentary loss of balance while working out could lead to a muscle injury in the wrist. Symptoms include pain, swelling, loss of motion, bruising. This can happen to anyone, even with a sudden fall and putting full body weight on the wrist.
Sprained Ankle
Walking on an uneven surface to running on a treadmill could cause a sprain in the ankle. It can happen to anyone at any age. It can be defined as the damaging of a bone, ligament or tendon. It is different from a fracture. It only damages and makes your movements uneasy.
How important is proper technique while exercising?
The proper workout is important as it promotes better performance and less pain. Proper technique while working out can help prevent injuries and improves muscle health. By working out in a proper form, you can easily target the right muscles in your body that need improvement.
The significance of muscle recovery time duration
Depending on the severity of the injury, the resting period can go from as short as one day to as long as a week. You are advised to train different muscles on different days to allow enough time to your other muscles to recover.
Things not to do for avoiding slowing down muscle recovery post-workout
Eating junk food
Junk food like burgers, noodles, etc., slows down the working strength of our body, so our body takes more time to recover. Therefore, you should avoid junk food and start eating fruits and vegetables.
Overtraining
You need to start with small workout plans that your body can maintain. Start directly from a heavy workout can damage your tissues of muscles.
Miss stretching
Just like you need to stretch out to warm up your body before commencing your working out, it is equally important to stretch out post-workout. It helps your muscles relax and open up.
Alcohol Consumption
Drinking alcohol regularly can impair your muscle health. However, drinking moderately or occasionally is still considered safe. Binge drinking just for a single day in a week could lead to muscle wasting and four times the risk of developing sarcopenia.
What are the factors that impact our muscle recovery post-workout?
Post-workout muscle recovery depends on three major factors other than diet.
Age: Your current age is an essential factor in play while trying to recover your muscles. Older workout people recover slowly than the younger ones.
Genetics: Your genes play a crucial role in your muscle recovery phase. If one of your parents had a low recovery rate especially at their young age, there are chances that you may have the same.
Health: When you are not keeping good health, your muscles will take time to recover. For instance, if you are sick, you will not recover as quickly as you expect. Moreover, if your hormones are imbalanced, they can also impact your muscle recovery speed.
The Bottom Line
Getting into and staying on track in your fitness regime requires a lot of dedication, focus, and concentration. Easing your muscle soreness and pain can help you work out better with reduced pain.
