We’ve talked about over-training. But what about simply under-recovering?
Sure, you might be experiencing some of the symptoms of over-training, but are you really training that hard? It has been suggested that working out without rest is what eventually leads to this condition.
Take a minute here to be honest with yourself: on average, how many days a week do you train? If you only manage to get in 3 or 4 days a week, you aren’t over-training. However, if you still complain of fatigue, altered sleep patterns, mood swings, increased frequency of illness, persistent muscle soreness, and weight loss, the truth is you’re probably just under-recovered. Instead of the problem being that you’re doing too many WODs, you likely aren’t doing enough to make sure you are sufficiently recovered from those WODs.
Simple rest is only the tip of the recovery iceberg! There are many aspects to proper recovery:
Nutrition
Nutrition is the foundation that fuels our bodies for performance. You can’t repair muscles without adequate intake of protein, carbohydrates and fats. It isn’t just the foods you eat, either. It’s the quality of the foods. The higher the quality of your nutrition, the more your body will glean from it. Think organic fruits and veggies, lean meats, nuts, seeds, healthy fats and un-processed foods. If you aren’t putting the right
nutritional gas in your tank, your system is probably running on empty. If you’re stumped and would like some advice on what to eat, read up on The Zone Diet, the Paleo Diet, or set up a nutritional consult with your coaches.
Sleep
Get at least 7 to 8 hours of decent sleep every night! During sleep, your body repairs muscle tissues and the central nervous system is rejuvenated. This allows for you to train at peak performance the next day. No rest equals less repair time!
Rest Days
As we are always telling you, rest days are just as important as WOD days. If you’re training hard enough, you will need to rest once every 2 to 3 days. Following a 3-on/1-off workout schedule would be beneficial for you. Active recovery is great too, so go for a swim, a quick jog, play squash, or even go rock climbing. Whatever you prefer!
Stretching
Do NOT save your stretching for rest days! Tight hamstrings, calves, shoulders, and even tight hip flexors are often to blame for the pain and injuries experienced by athletes. Do yourself a favor and stretch out after every workout. You don’t have to stretch out immediately after the WOD, but make it a point to stretch sometime between the completion of your WOD and your bedtime.
Cryotherapy
Instead of resorting to anti-inflammatory drugs or pain relievers, use ice. It can help with the inflammation associated with post-training muscle soreness. There is a normal healing process that occurs after an injury, in which the first 2 to 4 days are the inflammatory response
phase. This phase is essential for initiating the healing process. When you take a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, like ibuprofen, the entire healing process is halted. Go ahead and use ice packs, ice baths, ice cups, ice massage, just not ice cream!
As you can see, having an effective and consistent recovery program in place is essential for your continued success as a CrossFitter. Failing to take recovery time will inevitably lead to training plateaus or injuries. You should combat under-recovery with the same dedication that you use for your training. If you strive for elite human performance, that requires an equally high level of maintenance and care!
Today’s Workout:
Buy In – Overhead plate carry relay. Walk with a bumper plate overhead with active shoulders and arms locked out to the end of the parking lot and then switch with the next person. Each member of the team must complete 3 lengths there and back.
WOD – “Presses”
Shoulder Press 1-1-1-1-1 reps
Push Press 3-3-3-3-3 reps
Push Jerk 5-5-5-5-5 reps
* Add the total weight of your last lift in each exercise for your score on the leaderboard. You can also post each lift individually as well. *
Try to get a new PR in each of the lifts. You should be completely fatigued at the end of the last sets of each of the presses. If not, then you are not challenging yourself enough.
Cash Out – Stretch out those shoulders!
