recovery after training

session savage

Hi all,
Looking for some advice. I am back training a few months now after a few years off gallivanting.
After training its taking me three days or more (depending on the session) to feel 'normal' again.
I don't really mind this however if I train hard on a Monday I'm usually still f*cked by the time Wednesday rolls around and I find Wednesday training so much harder.
I know the logical thing to do is take it easier on Monday but we all know that's easier said than done.
So I was wondering if there is anything I could be doing to speed my muscle recovery?
Any advice please.
Thanks

Peetrik

Two things I've always found helped my recovery times.

1. Diet, plenty of fresh fruit, veg, lean meat, nuts, seeds & berries. Sounds almost too obvious but it makes a huge difference.

2. Keep at it, your body will eventually get used to to the new workload. As long as you're taking a rest day or two as you toughen up you'll be grand after a month or so.
If you start taking a week to fully recover your body won't get strong enough to cope with the new demands on it.

Dave 101

Replacing water after training has made a huge difference to me, could lose bout 2 kg in a good session so that's 2 litres that need to be replaced straight away, so weight yourself before and after training and drink at least 1 litre per kilo lost

Recovery drink after can help too, ratio of 2:1 carbs and protein

Magnesium supplement I find good also, replaces the magnesium lost during sweating and helps wit cramps and better sleep

thegreatiam

Sleep + food = recovery.

Aside from minor injuries that will get you on form.

How's your sleep? 8+ hours a night if you can.

and make sure your diet is right. fresh whole foods, minimal sugar, no processed crap. Plenty of protein, from meat, fish and nuts and eggs.

And stay limber, you'll recover better if you try to do some mobility work every day, especially back, shoulders and hips. (well, for me it was those areas that killed me the most)
Get some jump stretch bands and a foam roller.

session savage

Thanks guys.
Sleep is not the best ive a 9month old teething and a 3year old who gets up a 5.30 so zzzzzzzzzz.
But I can and will have to adapt my diet, I eat way too much junk.

Thanks lads.

thegreatiam

session savage wrote: »

Thanks guys.
Sleep is not the best ive a 9month old teething and a 3year old who gets up a 5.30 so zzzzzzzzzz.
But I can and will have to adapt my diet, I eat way too much junk.

Thanks lads.

That will be the reason. your body fixes itself while you sleep.
and it needs the right food to fix it with.

Try as best you can to get uninterrupted sleep. go to bed early if you have to. save xfactor to your sky+ box and watch it later.

and try to eat real food.
Plenty of threads on the health and fitness forums offering this advice

basically eat meat and 2+ veg at every meal time.
eat plenty of good fats,
dont eat much sugar, eat no processed junk.

Doug Cartel

One of the things you need to check for is that you are training smart and not causing yourself undue damage. If you're getting a stiff/sore lower back, you probably lack hip mobility. If you're getting a sore neck you might have bad mobility in your thoracic spine.

You can also get increased soreness because you're doing things wrong. When I used to do TKD I had a problem with my hips because I kept trying to kick higher than I was able to with good form - I really should have concentrated on form first and then worried about height. I keep seeing beginners in judo wrecking their wrists and rotator cuffs because they launch themselves into throws with their arms at a weird angle. Getting stuff like this sorted earlier can save you a world of pain.

Similarly make sure you're doing all the stretches and mobility exercises correctly - not just doing something that vaguely looks like what the instructor is doing. Quite often with these things if you're not careful you end up stretching or stressing completely the wrong muscle and it can just make you worse.

Kungfu

session savage wrote: »

Thanks guys.
Sleep is not the best ive a 9month old teething and a 3year old who gets up a 5.30 so zzzzzzzzzz.
But I can and will have to adapt my diet, I eat way too much junk.

Thanks lads.

Same here :-).

BTW when you say "gallavanting" do you mean parties/drinking? If so this will take it's toll. Try to get as much sleep as posible. Even a short nap after training. And drink green tea to help get rid of toxins. Try eating dates/figs during a short break in training....good energy booster.