Why rapid muscle recovery is so important for body and mind

How nice it is when you have found the perfect balance to your everyday work routine - perhaps you are already noticing the positive effect of exercise on your physical and mental health. To ensure that it stays that way, regeneration during sport is just as important as the training itself. This doesn't just include muscle regeneration - your psyche also needs regeneration. In addition, your body needs rest , the right nutrients and a balance between physical and mental exertion. In this story you will find out when it is best to take breaks, what regeneration phases can look like and what you can pay attention to for optimal and, ideally, quick regeneration.

Not to be underestimated: psychological regeneration

It all starts with your mindset : your attitude and your current state of mind have a huge influence on your mental and physical performance . That's why it's important that you get to know yourself well and not only allow yourself regeneration phases after exercise, but also on generally stressful or strenuous days . If you are stressed by too much work or have too many things on your mind, various relaxation exercises can help you. If you feel like it's all too much, you might even need to take a whole day of recovery - it's absolutely okay to just do nothing for a long time. Some athletes even take a “creative break” for several days to take the pressure off their training and then get back to the sport with more fun . If, on the other hand, you prefer active regeneration for soul and spirit , you can resort to compensatory sports . On such days, light jogging, yoga or even just your warm-up exercises could be the right active recovery for you. By the way: Switching to other balancing sports can also help you prevent imbalances.

Know your body: lack of motivation or real exhaustion?

“Am I really out of strength or am I just lacking motivation?” Have you ever asked yourself that? When it comes to sport, it is important that we know ourselves well, because if we don't pay enough attention to ourselves, overreaching or overtraining can occur: both of which arise from an imbalance between sports training and regeneration. While you can recover quickly from overreaching with a longer recovery period, overtraining leads to a long-term decline in performance over 2-3 weeks - or, in the worst case, injuries. But how can you recognize the symptoms early? Ask yourself the following four questions to find out more about your current physical condition:

1. How much energy do I have?
2. Am I getting enough sleep and waking up rested?
3. Do I have worse muscle and joint pain than usual?
4. Am I noticing my strength decreasing?

If you're still not sure or don't know whether you can trust your own answers, there's another option: measure your heart rate variability (HRV), for example with a smart watch. For example, if you measure your heart rate every morning, you can quickly determine an average value - if there are changes of more than 10%, you should either reduce your training or quickly give your muscles etc. a whole day to regenerate.

 

Integrating regeneration into your training plan

The best way to prevent overtraining is to integrate your regeneration phases into your training plan right from the start . Your body not only needs the regeneration time to stay healthy - your muscle building can also be promoted during regeneration . You can imagine it like this: With your training you set a stimulus for your body that can only be accepted and implemented in the regeneration phase . So if you push yourself to your limits during training, the onset of regeneration can increase your performance - this effect is also called supercompensation . So whether you do strength training or want to run a half marathon, your training plan should consist of approximately 50% active recovery.

A popular form of training is split training - you can't speed up your muscle regeneration, but you can make it more effective by using different parts of your body or muscle groups every day . This way you stay active, but your muscles can still recover thanks to the staggered regeneration curves .

It's best to let professionals help you create your training plan or have them take a look at it - this way you can be sure that you don't accidentally train the same body region on two consecutive days.

Building muscle through muscle regeneration

Just as you can promote your psychological regeneration, there are also ways to support the regeneration of your muscles after exercise. On the one hand, slight muscle relaxation can prevent later muscle soreness . On the other hand, you get nutrients (such as oxygen) more quickly and can get rid of waste products when your blood circulation is stimulated. Very important: All of these measures are not about triggering rapid regeneration or accelerating the regeneration time of your muscles - in some cases, excessive or premature measures can lead to injuries or irritations just as much as omitting the regeneration phase.

• Stretching: Light stretching exercises make sense in many sports, especially before training. You should only do intensive stretching on recovery days.

• Muscle loosening: A short cooldown on the treadmill and light, superficial massages after training help your muscles regenerate. Muscle loosening should only take place to a large extent on regeneration days.

• Heat: A visit to the sauna or a hot bath can improve blood circulation. Find out beforehand about appropriate times and temperatures.

• Cold: Cold or the alternation of heat and cold can also promote your blood circulation. A contrast shower, Kneipp showers or even an ice bath should help. However, you should also find out about a healthy level here.

Regeneration through nutrition and sleep

 

Have you worked out your optimal split training and are sticking strictly to the regeneration phases in your training plan - but still feel weak and unmotivated? This may be due to a lack of energetic regeneration . Energy is your physical and psychological fuel - your energy stores are recharged through the right nutrients and good rest: This means that you also need enough sleep and good nutrition for your regeneration phases!

Sleep better:

• Regularity: Your body gets used to repetitive processes. So it can be helpful if you always go to sleep at a similar time.

• Sleeping when you are tired: Spending time on your cell phone or watching a few episodes of your favorite series before going to bed have become routine for many people. This can have a negative impact on your sleep. It's best to go to sleep straight away when you go to bed.

• Autogenic training: If your day has been particularly stressful, autogenic training can help you switch off your mind.

• Go to bed early: At best, you should get between seven and eight hours of sleep. You're more likely to achieve this if you go to bed early - for example around 10 p.m.

Eat & drink better:

• Simple nutrition plan: No matter how stressful your day is, a healthy diet should always be possible.

• Drink a lot: Especially if you train a lot and lose fluids as a result, you should drink at least 3-4 liters of water per day.

• Micronutrients: There should be enough vegetables and fruits in your meals so that you get all the vitamins and minerals. If you're in a hurry, you'll find many important nutrients in Dextro Energy* products: Take a look at our Immune Fit °, the Energy Gums * and our Zero Calories° tablets a

• Adapt resources to training: During training you use up your memory of resources. The more you train, the more resources your body needs.

• Proteins: Our High Protein Crisp Bars are available in three delicious flavors - they are just the thing for in between meals.

• For quick carbohydrates after exercise, we recommend our Liquid Gel and our Energy Bar * .

Our Recovery Drink ° in particular is perfect for your regeneration phases because it not only contains magnesium and many important vitamins. In order to support your muscle building during regeneration and to replenish your glycogen stores, the delicious drink offers you the ideal ratio of proteins and carbohydrates.

Now we wish you a lot of fun with your next training session and a relaxing regeneration afterwards!

* contains carbohydrates

° Immune Fit: Vitamin B6, B12, C, folic acid, zinc, selenium and iron each contribute to the normal function of the immune system.
Vitamin B2, B6, B12, C, folic acid, magnesium and iron each contribute to reducing tiredness and fatigue.

 

° Zero Calories: Applies to the prepared drink

° Recovery Drink: Proteins contribute to increasing and maintaining muscle mass.

A varied, balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle are important.

Sources

https://www.br.de/radio/br24/versanden/das-fitnessmagazin/regeneration-trainingspausen-100.html

https://www.dflv.de/superkompensation.html

Photo credit

iStock.com/alvarez

iStock.com/Ivanko_Brnjakovic