4 ways to recover from an intense workout

Imagine if you did a thousand pushups in an hour? Would you be stronger at the beginning of those thousand pushups or at the end?

Quite clearly, you would be completely wiped out after the thousand pushups, and would only receive the benefits of the exercise after you had recovered from the training.

That is why when a new personal training or fitness bootcamp client at Genesis Gym asks me "how many times should I train" my answer is that it depends on what you can recover from.

More training is, in general, better since it means you can progress further. But more is not better if your exercise program is an added burden above and beyond the usual stresses of work, family, social commitments and environmental pollutants. A person under such a stress load needs to train a little "less" and focus more on recovery.

So, here are 4 things you can do to help your body recover from a hard workout. Please note, that hard, intense workouts are those which you put lots of effort into i.e. a hard run, or strength training workout. Reading a magazine for 10 minutes while pedaling on a stationary bike does not count.

1. Take in good nutrients in adequate quantities
These include:

Protein at about 2g per kg of body weight per day. For most men it means about 6 palm size servings per day, and for ladies, 3-4 servings. Trying to recover from exercise without protein is like trying to build a house without bricks. It is just not going to happen.

Carbohydrates after training, which refuel muscles and helps lower stress hormones post-workout. A good choice is ripe bananas with brown spots on their skin (they have less fructose and more glucose), rice, potatoes, yams, sweet potatoes. Bad choices are artificially sweetened drinks and processed pastries and snacks. The only exceptions for this "carbohydrates" suggestion are those who are close to diabetes, or are very overweight. Just stick to protein post workout then.

2. Manage physical stress levels
The critical ingredient for this is sleep, and achieving good sleep quality. Sleep is probably the most under-used recovery method out there. Check out my sleep article for some tips.

Natural nutrients that can aid sleep and manage stress include - Magnesium, phosphatidyl serene, valarian root from herbs or in tea form, inositol, taurine and glycine. Ask your health care provider to suggest dosages for you. The good thing about these nutrients is that they are non-addictive and you wake up with a refreshed feeling rather than the "oh, somebody just punched me" feeling of a hangover, or a sleeping pill.

Other physical stress management methods include - sauna, stretching (hold each position for 30 sec), massage of any kind, and sunlight exposure (which has emotional benefits too!).


3. Manage emotional and environmental stress levels
Stress is a "total" body response. Your body does not care if its from the recent "haze" causing pollutants to enter your nose, or of its from a stressful project deadline or nagging boss. The response of your body is quite similar.

So you need to manage these stresses by doing your best to negate them or remove yourself from them. Water filtration and using non toxic personal care products is a good start.

In addition, family time, service to others and your community, prayer, writing a journal, and having positive relationships with people around you are good choices for lowering emotional stress.

4. Plan your training properly
Nobody, not even the most gifted olympian, can train super hard, super long, all the time. The body needs time to recover to be at its best. In a month, our clients often do some weeks with more/harder training, and some weeks with less/easier training to help avoid injury and increase the speed of progress.

A sample month would be:
Week 1: Light training - get used to a new workout, learn new exercises etc
Week 2: Medium training - increase milage/number of sets/speed/total weight lifted etc...
Week 3: Hard training - all out effort, train till you push your limits, try to break your previous records
Week 4: Medium training - similar to week 2
Repeat week 1.

There are many ways to adjust training, but the above sample is a simple one that keeps most people motivated and injury free.

There we have it 4 ways to recover well, stay strong, lean, healthy and injury free!