17 Feb Skip the Ice Bath: Here’s How to Boost Your Training

Just because you don’t have a shoe named after you or get paid to play your favorite sport doesn’t mean you’re not a serious athlete. Most of the active people we see are very serious about their favorite athletic hobbies! Just try telling a runner to take a day off or a cyclist to keep the bike in the garage – especially during nice weather! If you train after work and on weekends and if you work toward competitive goals – even if you’re only competing against yourself – we have news: you’re an athlete.

While you may not feel like you have much in common with your favorite pros, much like a pro’s body, your body also needs specific circumstances to maximize your training. If you’re not focusing on recovery yet – you should be.

What is Recovery?

Recovery is the process/time your body uses after a workout or event to rebuild muscle and replenish energy stores. If you’re not being intentional about your recovery, you aren’t giving your body what it needs – while still demanding high performance! Think about it this way: recovery is the maintenance and you’re the reliable car – don’t plan on that hard journey without providing the right fuel and maintenance or you won’t get very far!

Passive Recovery

The old saying “the race is won in bed” is a great example of passive recovery ; in other words letting time -and sleep- fix the damage done by your workout. Taking a few days off because of delayed-onset muscle pain (DOMS) and resting can help you recover… but by planning an active recovery you can feel better faster and get back to your next workout with less downtime.

Active Recovery

Active recovery involves more focused effort. Your favorite athletes typically don’t skip their active recovery. Active recovery may involve:

• Stretching
• Foam rolling
• Using a percussive massage tool (massage gun)
• Using compression sleeves

Why not take a page from your favorite pro and help your body recover? For instance, you may not have seen the players recovering, but Normatec sleeves and Hyperice products were on hand for players to use. You (probably) don’t even want to win the Superbowl – you just want less downtime between your workouts!

At Body One, our providers treat patients of all ages and activity levels – from athletes getting back to their sport, to people with acute injury, to post-surgical patients, and much more. We developed our Recovery Plus program because we knew there was a gap for those in high-performance and endurance sports and really optimizing recovery on their own. Depending on the level of the program, a provider performs expert, targeted stretching that you can’t get from a video, or uses specialized treatment like dry needling (if indicated) or Graston Technique or other IASTM (instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization). If you just want a cool 30 minutes to recharge your muscles, that’s what our Recovery Zone is for: hang out in the N Normatec compression sleeves or use the Hypervolt on sore muscles. Read more here! Ready to book a session? Click here!

Body One is a locally-owned and operated practice, with 20 years of service to the Indianapolis area. We are conveniently located: North Meridian, Fishers, and Zionsville. Don’t settle for not feeling your best – visit Body One for wellness services or Physical Therapy today!