After a good workout, there is no doubt that you are feeling sore and possibly a little fatigued. This is a normal response to beginning a workout routine. During this time, it is important to take care of yourself both physically and mentally. It is easy to get discouraged by your body’s reaction to exercise and feel de-motivated. Just remember that this is your body taking notice of the positive practices you are putting into place and will soon be replaced with higher energy levels, increased strength, and a feeling of accomplishment. Take this as an opportunity to check in with yourself and remember why you started in this journey – write it down and put it in a place that you will see it each day!
Here are some helpful exercise recovery tips:
- Keep moving: It is easy to want to just sit on the couch and do nothing when your body is feeling tired and fatigued. As you increase the amount you exercise and overall fitness level there will be times when passive recovery is the best choice, but as you get adjusted to your new routine active recovery is what you need! If you are not up for CrossFitting today, try to participate in some type of active recovery. Active recovery is defined as a low impact, low intensity, short (15 to 30 minutes) workout such as walking, light jogging, playing light sports and yoga that will help to reduce the amount of lactic acid in your muscles. This is seen as a “feel good” workout for the body and for the mind.
- Remain Hydrated: Water plays an extremely important role in the human body as it is responsible for the actions and regeneration of fluids, tissues, cells, lymph, blood and glandular secretions including muscles and joints. Water is also accountable for digestion, elimination, respiration and maintaining the body’s temperature. In order to provide the body with all of its necessary nutrients it is imperative to drink pure water throughout the day from morning until night. When individuals do not consume enough water dehydration occurs, which has a number of negative indicators including: weakness, headache, fatigue and irritability; merely to name a few. Generally, it is recommended that active adults (YOU!) consume 75 percent of their body weight in ounces of water per day. In other words, since I weigh 130 pounds I would want to consume 98 ounces of water per day. Remember, water is essential to the maintenance and development of our bodies and should remain an important component to healthy living.
- Eat Healthy: Make sure to nourish your body with healthy foods. This may be the biggest challenge and I am here to help. All of our trainers have a vast knowledge of nutrition and are available to help you make healthy modification to your diet. You will want to focus your diet on lean sources of protein such as chicken, turkey, fish, and eggs (reducing the amount of yolks used), low glycemic carbohydrates such as nuts, legumes, sweet potatoes, oats, and quinoa, and vegetables such as spinach, kale, broccoli, and avocados (just to name a few). These healthy foods will help repair your body and provide you with the necessary phytochemicals, fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.
- Stretch: There are a number of benefits of stretching including increased flexibility, improved circulation, improved balance and coordination, alleviation of pain, and improved cardiovascular health. After any type of physical activity (i.e., CrossFit, active recovery) it is beneficial to take 10 to 15 minutes to stretch. We have a number of stretches that we love here. I am happy to share and scale these stretches to customize them for you!
- Stop feeling discouraged: At times we are our own worst enemy when it comes to getting and staying healthy. If and when you feel discouraged try these tricks for moving forward: stand up and move around – raise your shoulders and head towards the ceiling, take a few deep breaths and feel the oxygen nurturing your body, think positive thoughts – remember that you can do it and you will succeed, DARE to FAIL – the person who never fails is the person who never tries, and throw away all of your excuses!
- Be Consistent: I know from experience that fitness is absolutely amazing, while simultaneously being extremely challenging. The programming is designed for beginner to elite level athletes and I am here to customize the exercises to your fitness level. Your gains as a fitness enthusiast are positively correlated with the amount of times you come to for personal training. When you do personal training consistently you will make greater gains, enjoy the workouts more, and feel less wiped out in the process. In addition, some of the foundational movements are complex, so the more you practice them the better you will be!
I am here to support you and help you meet your fitness goals. We have the best training staff in the city and cannot wait to see you meet your true potential!
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