4 Keys to Faster Recovery | Alex Curtis Fitness

The road to recovery doesn’t have to be long and painful. It can actually be an enjoyable experience while you progress towards your goals.

There are 4 things you need to do in order to recover faster and more effectively after your training. Working out is going to damage the muscle tissues (in a good way) and now we need to rebuild them. These 4 keys to faster recovery are going to alleviate the soreness, reduce the amount of time you spend being sore, and also help you recover mentally. Here they are:

1. Eat Well

Make sure you’re supplying your body with the nutrients it needs to rebuild your muscle tissues, replenish your glycogen stores, and keep your mind sharp. Trying to recover without taking in the right nutrients is like trying to rebuild a house with duct tape. You need the right supplies and the right amount of supplies.

2. Barrel Roll/ Massage/Trigger Point

It doesn’t matter so much which one you do, as long as you’re doing some sort of deep tissue massage technique. This can be painful but it’s ultimately going to save you hours or potentially days of having to walk around feeling tight and sore. If you can’t afford (or don’t want to buy) deep tissue massages you can do it yourself using a barrel roller or using trigger point techniques. You’ll feel incredible after, you’ll have increased mobility and more fresh blood flow to the muscle.

3. Static Stretches

I don’t use static stretching as a warm up technique because it’s nowhere near as effective as dynamic stretching. But, as a recovery technique it works very well. I only spend maybe 5-10 minutes doing static stretches but I consider them to be a critical key to reducing fatigue throughout the day.

4. Sleep

This shouldn’t be taken lightly. Make sure you’re getting as much sleep as your body deems necessary per night. For some people, 6 hours is enough to feel refreshed, others might need 8-10 hours. Sleeping also reduces mental stress which can seriously stunt your progress due to the cortisol release associated with stress.

Source: Alex Curtis – https://acurtisfitness.wordpress.com/2016/02/10/4-keys-to-faster-recovery/