Recovery/Restoration for In-Season SportsOh great! It’s the second day of “2-a days” and you can barely get out of bed let alone get ready for the next practice! You’ve trained hard all summer (or at least you thought you had trained hard) and now that practices have started, you feel like your entire body has been in a train wreck. Why is this happening to you?
Well, in actuality it could be any number of things. Did you train your body the way it needs to be trained? Did you perform any sports conditioning before in-season practices began? Are you eating the right kinds and amounts of food? Is your system well hydrated and are you getting enough sleep? Have you taken the time to do some form of recovery work for your mind and body?
An athlete’s performance gains or losses are due in large part to how they adapt to different types of stress placed upon them. Recovery work is essential for the athlete and should be an integral part of training and practice. It can help the body overcome soreness and revitalize what arguably could be called the body’s command center, the central nervous system (brain and spinal column).
At the Conditioning for Optimum Results Training Center we utilize a vast array of recovery and restoration methods to help all of our athletes perform at their best when they compete! Although we combine both tried and true methods with the latest cutting edge techniques at our facility, there are many things an athlete can do on their own. Here are several simple ways that anyone from the weekend warrior, to the seasoned professional athlete can use to help the body recover:
1. Hot/Cold Contrast Showers: Yep, it’s exactly as it sounds, hot water (as hot as you can stand) for roughly 3 minutes, then cold water (as cold as you can stand)for 1 minute. Repeat this process 3 more times for a total of 12 minutes.
2. Epsom Salt Baths: We know most males do not like to take a bath but Epsom Salt can pull out the soreness faster than a regular hot bath. You can also mix it up by using baking soda for one bath and switching back to Epsom Salt for another bath. This way the body will not adapt to one type of method. Pour 1 to 2 cups in your hot bath for a soothing soak. Avoid Sodium Chloride (table salt) for recovery as this will have a stimulatory effect on the body.
3. Massage: There are many different modalities for massage. You could hire a Massage Therapist (one who knows how to perform sports massage) or choose a self-induced type of massage by utilizing any number of massage tools on the market. Although at first glance it looks promising, we cannot advocate your mother’s rolling pin to roll out tired muscles (not because it wouldn’t work but rather what mom might do to you if she caught you). When flying solo, we would recommend using a softer tool like a foam roller or basketball. You simply position the roller or basketball between the ground and your body and roll around on it to help remove any muscle spasms. This is often referred to by the acronym S.M.R. or Self Myo-facial Release.
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4. Sleepy Time: A restful night of sleep can do a world of good for the mind and body. Try to keep the room dark and quiet so you are uninterrupted by light and noise.
5. Hydration: The body needs to be well hydrated with water. In certain circumstances the body may need more than water so there is a time and place for electrolyte type drinks like Gatorade, Powerade and Cytomax.
6. Nutrition and Supplementation: In a sense, you are what you eat! Athletes require good sources of protein to build lean muscle and help repair damaged tissue from hard workouts and competitions. The benefits of carbohydrates for energy and good fats for cardiovascular and joint health must not be underestimated. Although supplements can often seem like a maze of confusion, there are some that can definitely aid in the recovery process. It would be advisable to research this area for yourself as well as seeking a nutritional expert to help you pick the best supplements for your situation.
So, there you have it! We have provided our short list of recovery methods that every athlete should be utilizing so they can perform at their best! Restoring the body is an active and dynamic process and it must be integrated into an athletes’ program. Separately, the methods listed above are effective tools in helping athletes, carefully integrated into a total program and their potential for optimum results is far greater! For more information please feel free to contact us at conditioning4optimumresults@hotmail.com or (801) 444-2819.
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