Feeling sluggish, lazy and unmotivated?

Struggling to recover? Feeling sluggish, lazy and unmotivated?

Part 1!

It could be one of the following things :

1. Macronutrient & calorie intake is incorrect. Macronutrients are the amount of Carbs, Fats & Protein you are eating per day. These could be wrong due to your body type, metabolism or daily activity levels. If your calorie consumption does not meet your daily activity levels and your body doesn't have the excess fat to provide energy (fat burning), your body will crash and feel run down.

2. Micronutrient intake is incorrect. Micronutrients are the amount of vitamins and minerals we absorb. Are you eating enough variety of fruit and veg? Yes? You may need extra supplementation as unfortunately the fruit and veg currently available for purchase has dramatically reduced in quality in the last 40 years, so much so, theories have suggested even up to an 80% reduction in vitamin/mineral quality.

3. Sleep & rest. Are you getting 8-10 hours quality sleep per night? If not, why not? This is the essential for recovery. During deep sleep your body releases growth hormone which in turn helps rebuild muscle tissue and cell rejuvenation.

Heres a few tips for a better quality nights sleep -

- Turn all electronic devices off at least 30 minutes before you want to sleep.

- Sleep in a completely dark room.

- A cold shower before bed will induce a deeper sleep

- Magnesium supplementation before bed has shown a deeper relaxation

4. Hydration. There has been studies to show even if you are 2% dehydrated, can lead to up to 20% reduction in performance. Water will help flush out toxins & lactic acid & better digestion just to name a few.

5. Flexibility and stretching. Imagine a rag that's absorbed water. How would you get the water out? stretch and twist the rag, the water will drain. Muscles are exactly the same. Lactic acid build up will need to be released from the muscle in order for fast recovery. This can be achieved through stretching, or foam rolling & mobility. Check out Kelly starratt on YouTube! Mobility WOD! Personally I recommend at least 15 minutes of stretching/Mobility per 1 hour of exercise.

So next time your feeling the strain, have you ticked all the boxes and gave yourself the best chance at recovery?

Look out for part 2 coming later in the week - Supplementation for recovery!