Active Recovery from Exercise

Active Recovery

Recovery from exercise is as important as the training itself. The recovery process allows the physiological processes that forces the desired changes in fitness and physique to occur. Understanding how to use active recovery techniques can reduce recovery rates and injury risk in exercisers of all levels.

Debate over the perfect recovery strategy has raged for years. Science has argued a number of times over the best approach, weighing the pros and cons of the two main strategies.

There is a school of thought  who advocate the complete rest – park your backside and don’t move. Proponents of this approach argue that the body shouldn’t be stressed any more than necessary. By not moving and making sure you adequately feed, the theory is the body can recover more quickly as there is little to interrupt the process.

Summed up, these guys suggest “don’t run if you can walk, don’t walk if you can sit, don’t sit if you can lean, don’t lean if you can lie and don’t lie if you can sleep!”

The opposite approach is the one I teach – active recovery. I like my clients to recover using a multistage approach…

1. Feed the body the best quality food you can. High quality protein, no grains, good fats and plenty of fresh vegetables.
2. Hydrate adequately. Typically I like my clients to drink 1 litre of water per 50lbs of bodyweight.
3. Use a foam roller to maintain tissue health. Spending a few minutes per day using the foam roller is a fantastic insurance policy against potential soft tissue problems.
4. Low intensity exercise. On rest days, taking a gentle walk, cycle ride or even stroll around town will promote blood flow, soft tissue movement and wakes you mentally and physically.
5. Sleep well. The ‘how much sleep’ debate rages and probably will for all eternity, but one thing remains constant – get as much quality sleep as you can. It really is the most important factor in the recovery equation.

This is the foam roller I use for my active recovery…

The benefit I see from active recovery is that it maintains tissue health due to the movement. By physically moving you improve blood flow which is vital to the speed and success of the recovery process.

Blood is the delivery system for nutrients and building blocks for tissue repair. In addition, blood is the vehicle by which waste products are delivered to the liver for removal and disposal. Promote blood flow and you promote repair. Promote blood flow and you promote the removal of waste products. To me this makes total sense – as long as the activity is of a low enough intensity as to not illicit physiological changes. The goal here is activity, not exercise. Don’t raise a sweat, don’t tire yourself out.

Improving blood flow is key to repairing any form of trauma in the body – hence bleeding from a cut or swelling in the soft tissues. It makes sense to me to actively promote the mechanism by which recovery is promoted and delivered.

So to best recover from exercise, my advice is to follow the following active recovery steps…

1. Eat well.
2. Drink plenty of water.
3. Use a foam roller daily.
4. Move, but don’t exercise.
5. Sleep.

These steps combined will have you feeling back to your best post-exercise, ready to start training again quickly!

The foam roller I use can be purchased here…

Work hard, but work smart and recover well.