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Rest and Recovery Tips

In the previous two posts I provided information about protecting your health through proper hydration in order to avoid heat illnesses. Along the same lines, it is important that all athletes remember the importance of rest and recovery. You can have the best training program in the world, but if you don’t allow yourself the proper rest and recovery after the training and competition, then you are asking for trouble in the long run.

After the training or race is over, proper recovery is extremely important to your health and physical condition. One aspect of a training program that many people overlook is the need for your body to rest and recover between workouts. Many dedicated athletes take their training very seriously, but they fail to recover adequately between workouts. They continue to push themselves excessively day after day which can lead to injuries, overtraining, and general fatigue.

If you train hard, but your results start to suffer or you see a decrease in your strength and conditioning, then a lack of recovery time and proper rest may be the culprit. Here are a few rest and recovery tips that should help you out should you feel that you are overtrained or not recovering properly from your training and racing.

There are several things that I would recommend for those of you who train intensely on a regular basis to help your body recover adequately between bouts of training. First, be sure to get plenty of sleep every night. Staying up late and getting up early several times a week will catch up with you after awhile. Adequate sleep is important to any athlete. At least seven hours (more if possible) is recommended.

Taking care of small injuries is also important. Bumps and bruises are common. Be sure to ice them down and take care of them. Remember, little nagging injuries can stay with you and affect your training and riding. Take care of them before they get worse. If you need to miss a day or two to get well, it’s not the end of the world. Recover and get back to full strength in order to train and ride effectively and safely.

Larger injuries must also be cared for before you attempt to return to training and riding. I get questions all the time about returning from broken bones, surgeries, etc. before the doctor releases you. Follow their advice – go to rehab with a physical therapist, rest, and get to full strength before attempting a comeback. Every day athletes try to come back too soon and end up hurting themselves again.

Be smart and take care of yourself. When your muscles are sore and you’re moving slowly (especially you older riders), be sure to stretch and warm-up properly before you train or ride. Hot showers and whirlpools can also help you recover between workouts. A professional massage is also an excellent method of recovery for your body. This helps loosen up the muscles, and you will feel much better. Personally, I get a massage about once a month, and it helps immensely with my recovery after a series of intense workouts.

Proper nutrition and supplementation are also important for recovery and maintenance of a healthy body, especially in athletes. Because athletes put daily stresses on their body they need to make sure that they get enough protein (as well as healthy fats and carbohydrates) to help maintain their muscles, strength, and overall health. A good balance between protein, fat, and carbohydrates is needed, and it works best when eaten in 5 or 6 meals throughout the day. Adding a good vitamin / mineral supplement to the diet is also a good idea for athletes to make sure all your bases are covered. It is beyond the scope of this article to go into detail about nutrition and diet, therefore I would recommend that you consult a sports nutritionist or visit your local bookstore or library and do some research.

Remember, you only have one body and you need to take care of it. I’m sure the older riders know what I’m talking about. As you get older it takes longer to recover between bouts of intense exercise, so it is advisable to get adequate rest, listen to your body, and take care of the little injuries before you go full speed again. Rest and recovery is an important aspect in the training of a serious athlete, and I highly recommend that you work it into your training schedule.