Foam roller massage to increase recovery
Training for a running or walking event takes a lot of work. You plan the time for your workout, get mentally prepared, put the effort in and sweat it out. An automatic recipe for getting fitter and faster, no? Not so fast. If you don’t recover properly from your training effort, your body won’t be able to build back stronger. Here are some tips to optimizing your recovery after hard workouts so you will get stronger and faster:
- Eat within 30 minutes of finishing: This is your optimum recovery window when your muscles are primed to soak up more glycogen and repair muscle damage. Aim for a ratio of 4:1 carbs to protein (examples: toast with peanut butter or a glass of chocolate milk)
- Drink: It’s ok to lose up to 3% of your body weight through exercise, just make sure you drink up afterwards. Your best source is water. Add some electrolytes if you were out and sweating for over 45 minutes.
- Put your feet up: If you’ve done a hard workout, your body will want to start getting to work on repairing itself. Now is not the time to go for a long bike ride or help your friend move. Relax by reading, listening to music or having a bath.
- Massage: Massages help to increase recovery by reducing tightness and scar tissue, and increasing blood flow to your muscles. Don’t get a massage immediately after your workout as your muscles might still feel tender. Wait a few hours to a day and then book one, or do it yourself with a foam roller.
- Ice: If you have any areas that are sore or irritated, ice them right away to reduce swelling and pressure on surrounding tissues. Don’t over-ice: 10-20 minutes should do the trick depending on where the injury is located.
- Sleep: Elite runners are renowned for the amount of time they spend sleeping – some up to 12 hours! You probably don’t need to sleep that much, but the idea is the same: the harder you train, the more you need to sleep for recovery. If you can afford to nap after a hard training effort and your body is asking for it, go for it! Otherwise, make sure to get to be early for the few nights following a hard workout.
