R and R: How You Can Recover Faster

• Why do you feel pain after workouts?
• How to recover smarter

My workouts the last month have been very much like the proverbial buses: (despite working out from home) this week I’ve had three gym sessions in three days.

I did intend to get up at 4am today for another but that didn’t happen.

I must say, as tough as I’ve made my home workouts, my body is in agony (a good kind though) with the gym sessions.

It certainly was a different perspective of being in a gym that I’m not currently working in!

Having been used to training five days a week, going to one in two weeks was always going to hit me hard. I enjoyed it nonetheless.

It reminds me of taking clients through their first training session – it is always the worst. I’m not one for pushing people to the limit of being sick (certainly not the first session) and my approach is focusing on the quality of the movement, especially with a strength and conditioning plan!

Clients would always feel stiff and sore from the first session, regardless of how moderated it was. That’s why it is so important to moderate the intensity.

Using muscles that haven’t been used before / in a long time is always going to have an element of discomfort.

It’s vital to gradually escalate the intensity, certainly from a coaches perspective or you’ll never see that person again! My motto is sustainability, moderation and enjoyment – these apply particularly during the first session.

Occasionally I’ll train a client who breezes through their first session and I’ll actually need to slow down their training because it’s inevitable that the following day will be uncomfortable. That feeling of Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOM’S) is why many people are discouraged by fitness.

The perception that it is more pain than it’s worth.

I detest the phrase “no pain, no gain”, it’s not “pain” as such, it’s more a sensation that you know you’ve done something the previous day not agonising pain.

As I blog about, the thought of getting started is weighed down by the perception of discomfort (this feeling completely ignores how great you will feel afterwards). Once you can appreciate the value of what you’re doing, then you’ll enjoy it more.

That’s why I love specialising in beginner’s fitness because the progress is faster and the rewards are greater. However, it’s essential to understand the pace of progress.

That’s why I’ve put in some basic home and gym fitness tests for the app. Not only can you see your improvements but you can also regulate the level of your training.

Starting off doing too much (even with custom made home workouts) can lead to injury.

On the other hand, you should be able to say that you’re feeling the effects of the workout.

One of the most difficult things to gauge is the intensity. When weight training, it isn’t an immediate feedback loop, you won’t know until the next day how much you’ve truly strained / overloaded the muscle. Cardio however is almost instantaneous and that’s why it’s crucial to balance the two for improving physique: cardio will only get you so far.

So, if your muscles are feeling uncomfortable and strained, what can you do?

Here are my three top tips for encouraging the body to recover.

1) Keep On Moving

The tendency to do nothing can be overwhelming but if your muscles are sore you need to get active.

Legs are often the worst after a gym session and even going for a walk can help infinitely.

By not moving, you’re leaving the built up lactic acid in the muscle to sit there. Being active (even moderately) will get the blood flowing and clearing it. Often it’s easier to keep training than allow the effects of the workout to kick in. Similar to “hair of the dog” often it just delays the inevitable outcome.

Any form of activity will help. Lactic acid is the sensation of muscle tightness that you get when you train. Training in the gym, long bouts of cardio and so on will do this! Straining the muscles beyond their natural limits (progressive overload) especially with repetitive movements will do this.

That sensation of being stiff and having limited movements is exactly that.

So sitting down for long periods can actually make it worse! As I found out having trained legs then sat through my girlfriend’s graduation ceremony!

2) Post Workout Nutrition

Getting the correct post-workout nutrients is vial.

These should always include some protein to help with the body’s muscle repair. Protein is the main nutrient when it comes to repair.

Carbohydrates are more the expendable energy source. If you can manage to get your protein intake correct then you can certainly improve recovery rates.

How much protein should you have?

For an average person, around 1.2 grams per kilograms of bodyweight is about right. However, if you train in the gym (seeking to build to lean muscle especially) or maintain an active lifestyle, you’ll be looking nearer 1.5g / kg bodyweight.

The most important time is arguably immediately after the session. This is when your blood sugar levels will be low. nutrients and energy depleted.

Repairing the torn muscle from the workout will happen a lot faster with the correct nutrition.

Your energy sources will also be low (glycogen stored carbohydrates especially) so refuelling these with good quality carbohydrates is essential.

Of course, drinking plenty water will help too. Often overlooked but very effective in removing toxins and lactic acid from the bloodstream.

3) Rest

This may seem contradictory to the first point but you will see what I mean…

Moderation is essential here too. If you don’t have rest factored into your routine then you’ll struggle to see the benefits of training.

Having taken nearly two weeks out of the gym. I feel so much better for the session that I did have.

Previously my routine depended on the gym and I didn’t have much recovery. However, with a structured plan you can factor in rest too: it shouldn’t be about dependency. Saying that, working in a gym, it was almost an occupational hazard.

If you enjoy your workouts then you’ll be able to push further. One thing I did notice is that I’ve lost the endurance side to my strength. I still have power with my lifts but I’m lacking stamina (which is understandable).

Find what works for you – if training 2–3 times a week is all you have time for, then that’s fine. At RYPT is know my clients aren’t training for the Olympics and with my beginner’s coaching packages, it revolves around you!

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Ross