3 Tips For Muscle Recovery
3 Tips For Muscle Recovery
When you drive your car, you know the amount of monthly maintenance involved in making your car run smoothly. Regular oil changes, rotation of the tires, regular tune ups. But when it comes to the body, most people tend to drive their bodies hard and forget about the monthly maintenance involved in making their bodies run smoothly. You likely enjoy going to the gym and breaking your muscle fibers down, but are you allowing enough time for your muscles to rebuild? It is what you do outside of the gym and in between workouts that allow for your muscles to recover which maximizes the strength-building goals you are working so hard to achieve. What you do on off-days is just as crucial as what you do in the gym.
Isometrics Should Be Incorporated With High Intensity Workouts
On a rest day, trade in your high-power weight lifting exercises for Isometrics: gentle stretching and holding a certain position for a period of time, your muscles are still engaged, but at a lower intensity. This allows nutrient rich blood to circulate through the muscles in order to enhance recovery and help them rebuild for your next intense training session.
Promote Circulation
Even on your rest day, stay nimble by moving your joints and muscles. The opening and closing of your joints brings fresh synovial fluids to lubricate, nourish, and hydrate these areas, while expelling waste and scar tissue. Rotate clockwise and counterclockwise to prevent imbalances and overuse injuries. Don’t forget to drink that water! Stay hydrated in order to flush the toxins from your body!
Invest In A Foam Roller
If you’re feeling tightness or soreness post-workout, you can use a long, semi-soft foam roller tube to give your muscles a massage. Using a foam roller breaks up scar tissue and any knots in the fascia. It is important to take care of this, for if they are left unattended it can lead to nagging aches and pains in your joints. If you spend at least 30-60 seconds minimum rolling sore muscle groups before bed and any time you can spare throughout the day this will assist in the muscle recovery process.
For more tips on muscle recovery, getting in shape, eating healthy, weight training, health and wellness, or if you’re frustrated with your current level of fitness and have been thinking about hiring a personal trainer, contact us.
