How Your Daily Habits Are Impacting Your Ability To Recover

If you’ve been working out consistently and prioritizing your health but you’re not seeing results, the missing piece to your puzzle may be recovery. Recovering from your workouts is almost as important as working out in itself. However, it’s important that we focus on all areas of health and not just the workouts.

Recovery is one large piece of the puzzle that can make or break your progress. While you think you may be recovering well, let’s evaluate some key points and see where you can improve! This may leave you wondering

“What could impact my recovery?”

NOT EATING ENOUGH

Whether you’re in a coached challenge or on your own journey, it’s important to make sure you are getting enough nutrients from protein, carbs, and fats! These are all vital when wanting to improve strength + endurance. If you’re under-eating your organs, muscles, and tissues cannot function properly, which means you will not perform or recover as well as you should.

NOT SLEEPING ENOUGH

We sometimes think we can train our bodies to run on a little amount of sleep, but the truth is you cannot! A lack of sleep can lead to an imbalance in hormones which can lead to decreased appetite, high blood pressure, and a weakened immune system. Getting enough sleep is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle. Being well-rested has a positive impact on your mood, metabolism, and brain function.

DRINKING TOO MUCH ALCOHOL

It’s nice to enjoy a drink or two, but what impact does it actually have on your recovery? Studies have shown that alcohol has a negative impact, creating inflammation in the body which can lead to the impairment of muscle protein synthesis, AKA making it hard to build muscle. It also has a negative impact on regulating hormones, which can lead to a decrease in the body’s metabolism. Drinking also dehydrates your muscles, organs, and tissues which will hinder your recovery time.

NOT DRINKING ENOUGH WATER

Here at Sesh, we are always pushing a gallon of water a day. Why? Your body is made up of about 70% water and it is essential to have every organ and cell functioning properly. Dehydration can lead to headaches, slow bowel function, and fatigue. From a recovery standpoint, water transports nutrients into the cells, helps regulate body temperature, and aids in protein synthesis. Simply put, you cannot recover well if you aren’t hydrated!

NOT STRETCHING PROPERLY

Many of us finish a workout and then leave the gym immediately. It is important to let your heart rate lower and stretch out after a workout. Stretching can release any muscle tension, increase range of motion, and increase blood circulation. On the other hand, stretching too much can hinder your progress. When you overstretch a muscle you can cause instability, micro-tears in muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joints can become hyperextended. We recommend picking a few stretches and holding them for 15-30 seconds. Remember to not force a stretch — you might feel slight discomfort but should never feel any pain.

After reviewing these key points, what changes can you make in your daily routine to help aid in your recovery?