6 Rules Of Recovery

Improve your results and reduce your aches and pains with these gym-tested, research-backed tips.

- Andrew Heffernan

Getting stronger is a two-step process: 1. Lift; 2. Recover. We often focus on the first step and pay lip service to the second. Bad idea. “Every time you work out, you’re digging yourself a hole,” says John Rusin, a physiotherapist who specialises in athletic performance and recovery. Recovery is refilling that hole before you challenge your body again. Here are six ways to recover right.

1 FIND WAYS TO CALM YOUR BODY

Target sleep and stress. If you can’t sleep eight hours a night, then learn to nap. Take naps no later than mid-afternoon or you risk ruining that night’s sleep. Aim for about 20 minutes; any longer and you’ll sleep too deeply and wake up groggy. For stress, end workouts with five minutes of deep breathing while lying on your back, feet slightly elevated, Rusin advises. It’s not a cure-all, but it helps.