Recovery tools / methods
Podcast by Christie Aschwanden
Christie Aschwanden, a science writer and ex athlete, has recently published a book relating to recovery. She set out to investigate which “recovery tools” worked and which were just cleverly marketed.
You’ll know from previous podcast referrals; we want you all to prioritise your recovery. As she clearly finds, nothing beats sleep when it comes to recovery. This is why we have suggested curfews on training and bedtimes – we know sleep is that important.
In the same way that you can´t buy speed, you can´t buy recovery
Many of the recovery tools marketed have little or no scientific evidence to support claims of recovery. This includes regular massages, rolling, icing, compression garments, supplements, etc. Instead, get the basics right first – time management, discipline (to train or even ease back from training) and sleep.
There’s nothing wrong with having a massage, but realise it is the lying down and giving yourself time to be “pampered” that’s working, not the massage per se.
Remember the podcast sent out with Mark Allen quoting his sleep routine? He swore his success was linked to having 10hrs sleep EVERY night!
Use your mood as the key indicator of your recovery state
Christie mentions that mood is probably the best indicator that you have to gauge your state – far superior to any technology. So, if you feel abnormally groggy, tired, demotivated, grumpy, irritable, overly/under hungry, etc, its telling you something. Ask / listen to your friends, family, children, colleagues, etc – they will likely pick up on your mood changes first!
We attempt to predict how you are reacting to the training, but only you know how you feel and how you respond to life in general. Let us know if you sense any of the abnormal moods so we can modify your training to help you recover.
Our modifications won’t involve a stop of training, we’ll just swap the planned sessions with lighter easier session. This drop of intensity and volume will keep your body’s moving and active but with reduced stress.
