Recovery
You Came. You Ran. You Conquered.
And then?
If you did push to your limits, you hobble :P
Running to your personal best and the mere euphoria of the new PB dilutes the pain for while. But the real talking point is in the evening and the day after, when you end up walking like John Wayne and it becomes quite a conversation piece.
However, even though that walk is a nice way of telling people you got your PB, its better to avoid the misery of holding the railing while climbing the stairs.
Recovery is an essential part of your training cycle. The race you finished is definitely not your last race and many of you here are looking towards the other races on the calendar.
We'll talk about how you can get back on your feet and enjoy that post race euphoria without wincing everytime you take a step :
1. Walk(after you finish your run) : So you have stopped your Garmin, collected the medal, taken the post race breakfast.
Don't sit down immediately.
Walk, if not Jog for atleast 5-10 minutes after the race is over just to keep the blood flowing and letting the lactic acid flush out.
2. Stretch : Most of the runners must be having a normal stretching routine that they follow.
If not, follow this video : https://www.youtube.com/watch?
And make sure to do the stretch before digging into the post race bounty. It will get the blood circulation going and make you feel much more comfortable after it is over.
3. EAT! : Best way to recover is to gobble.
As a responsible athlete, i'll urge you guys not to splurge on sweets and take a tonne of refined sugar or make merry as you down a six pack of Heineken.
Choose a good recovery drink.
Something like Fast&Up's Recover : http://fastandup.in/product/recover/
Or any good Protein Shake, having a 3:1 or 4:1 Carbohydrate to Protein ratio.
And more importantly, catch up on a good meal with Protein rich foods.
End the meal with a square of chocolate. That's all the sugar you've earned :P
PS : Keep the recovery drink handy and try to eat within 30 minutes of the finish.
4. Hot Tub : No, not an innuendo. Merely a suggestion. Take a tub(or a bucket like I do), fill it with hot water, put some salt into it and then, drink it.
Just kidding.
Dip your legs into it.
If you have a tub, it is better as your glutes too get the warmth of the water, but it is not necessary.
Keep them in the water till it gets cold.
It helps in loosening the muscles and will give a fuzzy warm feeling.
5. Compression Socks/Calf Sleeves : They are worthy investment. Can be worn in the race and after the race.
They are expensive, but they work. They get the blood flowing and avoid lactic acid build up.
Popular brands include : Skins, 2XU, Compressport.
6. SLEEP! : Yes, you'll have a lot of messages from well wishers congratulating you on blazing the tracks and making them proud. And you'll be waiting desperately for timingindia to release your results in the evening.
But till that happens, get some shut-eye time.
Sleeping is body's natural recovery mechanism and highly underrated.
I recommend it. Trust me, 2 hours of shut-eye works wonders :)
Have a great ADHM, everyone!
Cheers!
And then?
If you did push to your limits, you hobble :P
Running to your personal best and the mere euphoria of the new PB dilutes the pain for while. But the real talking point is in the evening and the day after, when you end up walking like John Wayne and it becomes quite a conversation piece.
However, even though that walk is a nice way of telling people you got your PB, its better to avoid the misery of holding the railing while climbing the stairs.
Recovery is an essential part of your training cycle. The race you finished is definitely not your last race and many of you here are looking towards the other races on the calendar.
We'll talk about how you can get back on your feet and enjoy that post race euphoria without wincing everytime you take a step :
1. Walk(after you finish your run) : So you have stopped your Garmin, collected the medal, taken the post race breakfast.
Don't sit down immediately.
Walk, if not Jog for atleast 5-10 minutes after the race is over just to keep the blood flowing and letting the lactic acid flush out.
2. Stretch : Most of the runners must be having a normal stretching routine that they follow.
If not, follow this video : https://www.youtube.com/watch?
And make sure to do the stretch before digging into the post race bounty. It will get the blood circulation going and make you feel much more comfortable after it is over.
3. EAT! : Best way to recover is to gobble.
As a responsible athlete, i'll urge you guys not to splurge on sweets and take a tonne of refined sugar or make merry as you down a six pack of Heineken.
Choose a good recovery drink.
Something like Fast&Up's Recover : http://fastandup.in/product/recover/
Or any good Protein Shake, having a 3:1 or 4:1 Carbohydrate to Protein ratio.
And more importantly, catch up on a good meal with Protein rich foods.
End the meal with a square of chocolate. That's all the sugar you've earned :P
PS : Keep the recovery drink handy and try to eat within 30 minutes of the finish.
4. Hot Tub : No, not an innuendo. Merely a suggestion. Take a tub(or a bucket like I do), fill it with hot water, put some salt into it and then, drink it.
Just kidding.
Dip your legs into it.
If you have a tub, it is better as your glutes too get the warmth of the water, but it is not necessary.
Keep them in the water till it gets cold.
It helps in loosening the muscles and will give a fuzzy warm feeling.
5. Compression Socks/Calf Sleeves : They are worthy investment. Can be worn in the race and after the race.
They are expensive, but they work. They get the blood flowing and avoid lactic acid build up.
Popular brands include : Skins, 2XU, Compressport.
6. SLEEP! : Yes, you'll have a lot of messages from well wishers congratulating you on blazing the tracks and making them proud. And you'll be waiting desperately for timingindia to release your results in the evening.
But till that happens, get some shut-eye time.
Sleeping is body's natural recovery mechanism and highly underrated.
I recommend it. Trust me, 2 hours of shut-eye works wonders :)
Have a great ADHM, everyone!
Cheers!
Nice 👍
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