The ROAD LO RECOVERY

Former rugby fly-half BEN SEYMOUR shares his essential guide on how to recover from those tough training sessions and take your wellness seriously...

There was a time when only professional athletes had the ability to utilise effective solutions to help themselves recover from a tough training session, stress and everything life threw at them. Everyone else was told to stretch, foam roll and get some sleep. While those strategies are fine, there are far better solutions to help you feel better faster and they are more accessible these days.

There has also been a big shift in mindset from people feeling that they should only prioritise recovery/wellness once they have reached burn out or if they have become injured, however this old-school attitude of working hard, playing hard and not taking time for self-care has thankfully started to quieten down due to more people speaking up and acknowledging burnout and the major side effects that it can have. As a result, more people are taking their wellness seriously and they are incorporating recovery practises into their routine. Aside from obviously helping your muscles recover, another beneficial effect of using recovery treatments is that they can also help to manage your cortisol levels - when this hormone is not under control it can reap havoc on your body.

WHAT IS CORTISOL?

Cortisol is the hormone that is produced when we add stress to our body, and it is often referred to as the "stress hormone". Not only is it vital for helping your body regulate blood sugars, reduce inflammation and metabolise, but it is also the hormone that is activated as part of your "fight or flight" response. An example of a common use of cortisol would be if you are doing a HIIT workout class-your cortisol will rise during the heavy work phase of the workout and then it should align itself shortly after the session if you give yourself enough time to reset. Or, if you are running away from something, your cortisol will again spike to help you run faster and get away.