Are You Tough Enough to Recover?

We all know the feeling after a long workout. You are exhausted and the thought of even taking off your shoes sounds exhausting. Shower?! Yeah right. But before you sit down for that hard earned relaxation, just remember the one thing that your body needs after a tough adventure: recovery. Your body needs to be replenished, and quickly, of the critical nutrients it has just lost. Not only for the workout you just did, but to prepare you for the next one!

Refuelling after a workout doesn’t have to be complicated. While having access to a kitchen is ideal to replenish your body with whole foods after exercise, sometimes that just isn’t possible. Your workout might end at a trailhead or campsite, or maybe you have a long drive home. Regardless, it is important to get the nutrients you need quickly so your body can recover faster. Keep in mind that after a workout, your muscle fibers are broken down, your energy stores are depleted and your body is fatigued.

Getting your body the protein, carbs, fats and hydration that it needs can be the difference between crushing your next workout, or taking the day off.

3 Keys to Recovery

1. Rehydrate – When thinking through recovery, there are a few important items to consider giving your body what it needs. One of the most important aspects is hydration. After a workout, your body is dehydrated. All of the sweat you just lost needs to be replenished through water and electrolytes. It is important to drink something that includes the key electrolytes (sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium) to restore balance. Dehydration can slow the recovery process down, so it is vital to rehydrate quickly following a tough workout.
2. Rebuild – Remember that during a workout, you are constantly tearing and breaking down muscle fibers. In order to recover, you need to refuel your body to allow the broken-down tissue to repair, recover, and continue to build. The best way to rebuild and repair the damaged muscle you have just broken down is to fuel your body with complete protein. Fuelling with complete protein allows your body to absorb the needed amino acids and immediately use that protein to get to work in preparing your body for the next workout.
3. Replenish – In addition to rehydrating and rebuilding, you also need to replenish your glycogen stores and restore your energy after a hard workout. Carbohydrates serve as your muscles’ major source of energy which makes it important to include carbohydrates in any post workout nutrition. Between 30 to 60 minutes after a workout, your body consumes glycogen at an accelerated rate to replenish your glycogen stores. This is known as the “golden hour” and is the most important time to consume a post workout fuel! While you may not feel particularly hungry after a tough workout, your body can’t wait for your appetite to come back. Replenishing your body within the hour allows your body the best chance for recovery, and you the best opportunity to PR that next workout!

Post Workout Matters!

Recovery plays a important role in setting you up so that your next workout can return even better results. Why is it that it is often overlooked? As mentioned earlier, the thought of kicking off your shoes and grabbing a cold beverage sometimes gets in the way of thinking about the nutrition your body needs to recover. But your body just got you through that hard workout, don’t you want to reward it by giving it what it needs? We are all for enjoying a nice cold drink post workout (we do it ourselves!), but not until you rehydrate, rebuild, and replenish to make sure you kick butt on your next workout too!