How to Improve Recovery from Hard Training and Racing

The stresses of hard training and racing can leave a runner feeling physically and mentally drained. A failure to recover properly can make it very difficult to perform adequately in the next training session or race. Indeed, the cumulative effect of continually failing to pay adequate attention to recovery can lead to staleness, loss of form and even injury. So what is optimum recovery? Good recovery should aim to return your body to the condition it was in prior to the hard training session or race. In other words you want to;

Remove any lactic acid that has accumulated in the muscles
Replace the depleted energy sources used to fuel your training or racing efforts
Rehydrate your body to replace the fluids that have been lost
Repair any damage to muscle fibres or joints
Restore your mental energy and focus

To help you achieve these goals and keep you in tip top shape for hard training and racing, try following these tips for super-fast recovery;

Keep on the Move

After strenuous exercise there is a natural tendency to stop immediately or lie down to recover from the effort. This is the worst thing you could possibly do! You can greatly speed up the rate at which lactic acid is removed from muscles by maintaining low intensity exercise for 10 to 20 minutes after your racing efforts. Also, when doing intensive interval training, light jogging between the faster efforts, instead of walking or standing around, will speed up your recovery rate and help maintain work output over the period of the session.

Do Some Stretching

The question of whether stretching should be done before or after exercise has been a controversial subject. Stretching that is carried out when muscles and tendons are cold and inflexible can cause damage to tissues. However, the expert view now seems to be that stretching AFTER training and racing is best. Stretching carried out after your workouts and races can help reduce muscle soreness and may even prevent some injuries. Stretching can still be used as part of a pre-exercise provided routine provided it is preceded by some light jogging to warm-up the muscles, ligaments and tendons that are to be stressed.

Start Refuelling Immediately

The prime source of fuel for endurance exercise is carbohydrate which is stored in the muscles as glycogen. Severe training and racing depletes muscle glycogen and until this deficit is restored the body will be incapable of carrying out high quality work and may even suffer excessive exhaustion and muscle soreness. The key to rapid recovery is fast replenishment of muscle glycogen stores and this is best achieved by ensuring the body is fed ample carbohydrates within the immediate post-exercise period, i.e. within the first 20 minutes! Good sources of carbohydrate include sports drinks, energy bars, fruit and jelly babies!

Add Some Protein

One of the consequences of hard training and racing is the breakdown of muscle proteins, which can lead to muscle soreness and, in severe cases, injury. You can help the body rebuild muscle protein and speed up your recovery by including a small amount of protein in your post exercise refuelling regime. A simple way of combining carbohydrate and protein in your post training snacks would be to try a tuna or ham sandwich or use one of the commercial drinks available from specialist suppliers.

Replenish Fluids

During strenuous exercise body fluids are lost and this loss can be quite significant in hot and humid conditions. Body fluids must be maintained at adequate levels to avoid changes in blood volume that might affect the delivery of oxygen and fuel to the muscles. More seriously, serious loss of fluid will hamper the body's ability to sweat which is important in keeping body temperature at safe levels. It is essential that body fluids should be kept topped up prior to and during exercise and any losses due to sweating replaced immediately afterwards.

Salt is Important

Sweat loss during exercise includes both water and electrolytes (mainly sodium chloride and potassium). If you try to replace lost fluids by drinking only plain water much of this will simply pass through your body and be excreted as urine. To avoid dehydration you must replace lost fluid and electrolytes at the same time by using drinks that contain water, carbohydrate and salt. You can achieve this by using one of the commonly available isotonic sports drinks or simply adding a pinch of salt to your own favourite concoction. It's also a good idea to include some additional salt on your food after exercise in hot weather.

Get Plenty of Sleep

Good quality sleep is essential to allow the body to replenish itself and get physically and mentally prepared for the next training session or race. If the average human needs 6 to 8 hours to function efficiently, then it would be reasonable to assume that athletes need more. Remember the old adage that one hour before midnight is worth two hours after - quality counts even when sleeping!

Sources:

Gatorade Sports Science Institute
New Studies in Athletics (IAAF)

Top ...