For all fall marathoners, half marathoners, triathletes and active beings, it is time to address a subject that is often overlooked. I, too, am guilty of ignoring the advice and falling flat on my face right after exerting all my extra energy to cross that finish line. It goes something like this, “I am done...free. No more early morning, no more long hours training, no more pasta.” This mentality and lack of activity is the worse thing you can do after completing a competition. It is time to pay attention and take an active role in your recovery. I am referring to the concept of active recovery. By definition, active recovery is a “cool-down” or tapering-off phase during a single bout of exercise and can be applied, not just after competition, but also after an increase in exercise duration or an increase in exercise intensity.The purpose of active recovery crosses into multiple spectrums of training and sport.
Mentally, it promotes relaxation for you after officially kicking your own butt and now you can “walk it off.” This will help bring closure to a competition, help strategize for future workouts, or allow you to partake in some mindless exercise. No stop watches, just movement.
Symptomatically, it reduces pain, soreness, and/or stiffness that occurs after one increases exercise intensity, exercise duration, or participation in eccentric exercise. Let me back up, and first explain why pain, in whichever form, occurs. As we exercise, we have to supply our muscles with energy and nutrients in order
to have our muscles function properly. This is done primarily through blood flow. Now, as a muscle absorbs nutrients and energy, it produces waste products, and the build up of waste products induces pain.
I am going to focus on lactic acid, which is a major waste product of cellular metabolism. Increased production of lactic acid will occur after an increased demand is placed on a working muscle. And again, this storage will cause pain. This experience is referred to as DOMS - delayed onset muscle soreness. Some of you may have experienced this already. DOMS does not occur right away, as symptoms are typically experienced 48-72 hours after a bout of exercise. In order to minimize or prevent DOMS, one must participate in (dare I say it?) active recovery.
This brings me to the last spectrum of active recovery and its benefits physiologically. This happens to be directly related to DOMS. Active recovery requires us to be active, moving, using our muscles, increasing our heart rate, thus using our body to actively pump blood through the body to carry lactic acid and other waste products out of our system. Venous pooling can also occur after exercise and refers to the accumulation of blood in our extremities, decreasing how much blood is returned to the heart. Active recovery aids in prevention of venous pooling in our legs after we have asked them to carry us for many miles, and then ask them to stop.
So, how do you recover? Many sources suggest “light” exercising for a 20-30 minute bout. For runners, maybe hop on a bike. Cyclists, maybe go for swim. Keep it simple and easy. Massage may help, but you may have to participate a little more initially, then treat yourself with gentle massage to work out any additional kinks and knots.
The big take home message is although you may be tired and “over it,” but think of all the stress and torture you have put your body through. The pounding. The pushing. The damage. Participating in something mindless and easy for thirty minutes is cake, so do it for yourself, your body, and your health.
For more information, please contact me at Susana@JointVenturesPT.com
Sources:
Queen, E. Active recovery: low-intensity exercise may
be better than complete rest after competition. http://
sportsmedicine.about.com/od/tipsandtricks/a/activerecovery.htm.
Updated May 5, 2009. Retrieved July 31, 2011.
Schurman, C. Active recovery. http://www.bodyresults.com/
e2activerecovery.asp. Updated November 2003. Retrieved July
31, 2011.