Are you recovering as hard as your training - Part 1

Are you recovering as hard as you train?

We all give 100% in our training and focus on pushing those boundaries and trusting the process. But are you consciously thinking about your decisions for your lifestyle outside of the gym? Are you recovering as hard as you train? Do you feel fresh when you enter the gym? Or are you constantly lethargic and broken?

Here’s 8 tips to help give you the best chance of progressing.

1. Diet

2. Hydration

3. Stretching / Mobility

4. Sleeping

5. Sports Massage (part 2)

6. Supplements (part 2)

7. Bathing (part 2)

8. Sex (part 2)

Diet basics -

Are you eating enough? Your vehicle cannot run without fuel (Your calories & Macronutrients) or oil to lubricate the engine ( Your vitamins and Micronutrients ). So why do we expect our body to?

Now for the purpose of this article, we are talking purely for recovery and performance. NOT weight loss, fat loss, building muscle or anything specific like that.

So first, you need to work out your calorie expenditure per day. Those that have fitbits with heart rate monitors should give you a rough idea of how many calories you are burning in 24 hours. For those that don’t have fancy watches, we need to use a calculation. If your slightly lazy (like me) we can just use an online calculator >> http://www.calculator.net/calorie-calculator.html

Now you will have your daily calorie number.

Now we need to take a look at our macronutrients. How much carbs, fats and protein?

I suggest to all my members and clients (for performance) a general split of 40% carbs, 30% protein, 30% fats.

You can track this using calorie counting apps such as myfitnesspal.

Micronutrients – Ill go into this later on in the article with supplements, but for now, hit as many colours of fruit and veg you can get your hands on. Regarding you stay within your calorie limit!

Hydration –

Seriously one of the most beneficial points of todays post and easily the easiest to fulfil. JUST DRINK MORE WATER!!!

Ok, so how much water? I recommend 1 litre per 50lb of bodyweight. So for a 150lb person, thats 3 litres of water.

Does tea and coffee count? NO. Caffeine can dehydrate the body. So you’re going the opposite way!

Why hydrate? When training, your body starts to heat up. In order to cool itself down, your body will sweat. Which takes the heat away from the body and to the surface of the skin. Overheating will reduce your ability to perform.

Your muscles when training also fills with lactic acid. That nasty burn. This lactic acid in the muscle needs to be flushed out in order to recover.

Other benefits of correct hydration include more energy, better digestion & better skin!

Stretching and mobility –

Without going into to much detail here, you NEED to check out these 3 youtube channels :

1. Joe De Franco Limber 11 routine - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSSDLDhbacc

2. ROMWOD - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPNMKLMuqv8&list=PL7Ual_rTPsbfKtfXtOoJqXd9M7Vyy92xM

3. Mobility WOD - https://www.youtube.com/user/sanfranciscocrossfit

How much stretching and mobility? I recommend 15 minutes minimum per hour of exercise. Little and often works best. Promotes blood flow to the muscle, which floods the muscle with nutrients, which then allows faster recovery along with better range of motion, flexibility and injury prevention.

Sleeping

How much sleep are you getting?

You are literally recovering when asleep. No sleep, no recovery. A typical athlete ( which is what you are, if you are regularly training ) needs 7 – 10 hours sleep per night. This is quality sleep too, undisturbed. This is NOT unachievable unless you have a new born baby or some other individual issue. The average busy person CAN be in bed asleep at 10am and wake up at 6am. Plenty of time for breakfast and sort out personal matters before work. If you feel this isn’t achievable for you, please contact me and I will do my best to give you individual advice.

Struggling to sleep at night?

Heres some tips :

1. Get off your phone. Bright blue light emitted from your phone livens you up.

2. Turn the TV off at least 30 minutes before sleep. Loud noises and flashing images will again stimulate your brain to wake up.

3. Natural supplements and vitamins – discussed later in this article.

4. Cool baths or showers – Discussed later in this article.

PART 2 COMING SOON