It is common to say that the most important thing in training is rest. Some people think that this is just something lazy players say. However, in reality body regeneration is as important as training. If you overdo it with loads or do not create adequate conditions for regeneration for your body, your training will not bring the desired effect.
Surely, everyone has heard or used a massage, sauna, brine baths or other bioregenerative treatments. However, which work best and when to use them?
Remember that biological regeneration is not just the above-mentioned treatments. To quickly recover from an exhaustive training session or a match, remember about the right diet, irrigation with high-mineralized water and mental renewal.
1-2h before training
As you have already learnt from dietary advice, going to a training sessions with a large supply of glycogen, you will be able to maintain your strength during exercise longer. Therefore, you should eat the right amount of complex carbohydrates and hydrate with high-mineralized water or isotonics. Thanks to such treatments you will be less exhausted and the body will need less time to regenerate.
15 minutes before training
Do not forget about a proper warm-up. You can come to the training earlier and spend 15 minutes to prepare for the physical effort. Divide the warm up into two parts where in the general part you perform exercises such as jogging, stationary bikes and flexibility exercises such as skip ups, swings, and bends. In the specialist part mimic the movements preparing you for the effort in a given training unit, with your own body weight or small weights.
Such a procedure will raise body temperature, make the tissues more elastic and improve the work of neurotransmitters, which will reduce the risk of injuries and body sourness after a hard training session.
After training - 10 minutes
Remember to do “cool down” type exercises, which will cool the body, so that you do not end up the training giving your muscles a shock after stopping immediately. Stretching during and after the training will balance out strains in damaged muscles, tendons or ligaments. Remember that stretching should not be painful.
After training - 15 minutes
The most common and available method is to take a contrast shower. What is a contrast shower? It is nothing but the use of hot and cold water alternately. This action expands blood vessels, which consequently activates the circulatory system and faster body oxygenation, while helping to get rid of faster toxins secreted during training.
After training - 30 minutes
Remember to replenish your glycogen stores while eating a wholesome meal rich in carbohydrates and protein. This supports the process of rebuilding damaged muscle structures during training.
Evening bath
In the evening, if possible, take a brine bath, adding Bochnia or Iwanicka salt to warm (not hot) water, and lie there for about 3 minutes. Immediately after leaving the bathtub, wipe yourself and lie under a quilt for some time. This way, sweating you get rid of toxins from the body. Salt aims to neutralize excess lactic acid formed during exercise and has deacidification properties. Thanks to this, you will get rid of muscle pain faster. After an hour of sleeping, take a shower and go to sleep. Under no circumstances can you get through the night after a hard match because the body regenerates best during sleep.
12 hours
Remember to make a morning light 15-20 minute warm up, it is very important for your body. This effort stimulates the body to produce enzymes and hormones that accelerate regeneration. Do you know that you can extend your recovery by 1-2 days without using this type of treatment?
24 hours
After this time, the moment comes for a sauna. Due to its dehydrating action and loading of the cardiovascular system, it is not recommended immediately after exercise or one day before a competition. The main tasks of the sauna include acceleration of post-workout regeneration, reduction of muscle tension, tendons and ligaments, removal of toxic metabolic components, shortening of the fatigue phase.
Remember that small things affect the final result, and only your choice will make you better prepared than others.
Patryk Bieńkowski, M. Sc.
Physiotherapist, manual therapist
https://pl-pl.facebook.com/JustPatRehabilitacja
