In the last article we looked at the importance of adequate rest and recovery and how the improvements take place if the rest and recovery is timed accurately.

This article will look at how we can accelerate the recovery process using some simple but effective methods.
There are of course two major areas that contribute to an athletes recovery sleep (together with other natural modes of recovery) and correct nutrition are both vitally important and both of these will be covered in consequent articles.
Different forms of training will require different recovery needs; for example the primary recovery need of an endurance athlete will be nutritional i.e. adequate replacement of fluid and nutrients whereas an athlete training for speed would need to focus firstly on recovery of the nervous system (see previous article). We will look at a few physiological recovery methods here to aid recovery of sore muscles, helping them to relax and increase blood supply to them.

Relaxation of muscles is beneficial in promoting a sense of well being. It is also important that muscle length be returned to optimal to ensure good range of movement around joints; imperative for an injury free training process.

In increasing the blood supply to the muscles we enhance the process of removal of accumulated waste products as a result of training as well as supplying oxygen and glycogen to depleted muscles.

It is generally found that most regeneration/recovery methods will have a positive effect psychologically too, promoting relaxation and a sense of well-being.

Here are a few examples of the ways we can help the recovery process along: -

1.Cold therapy
Anyone who watched the Olympics last year would have seen and heard of the wheelie bins full of ice cold water that our athletes plunged themselves into following training or competition! The theory behind this seemingly mad thing to do is as follows; exposure of the muscles to the cold will increase the blood flow, as the metabolism is increased in response to the stimulus. This will help with the clearance of waste products such as lactic acid and carbon dioxide and by increasing the levels of oxygen to the muscles. There is evidence that the incidence of muscle spasms is reduced with this form of treatment too. For the best results it is recommended that the cold stimulus be applied immediately following the activity for approximately 15 mins or so.

2. Contrast baths
If the thought of sitting in a cold bath post workout does not fill you with joy there is hope; it can be combined with exposure to heat too! It is thought that alternating between the two stimuli will cause a pumping action within the muscles and can help treat muscle spasms.
Saunas and steam rooms or whirlpools can be used in conjunction with cold showers. The heat exposure should ideally last three times longer than the cold exposure and the alternation can take up to twenty minutes. The treatment should begin and end with a cold exposure. In general, the larger the recovering muscle groups the longer the treatment.

3.Heat therapy
Steam baths and saunas affect the nervous and endocrine systems. Approximately 10 minutes in a warm shower can be generally relaxing and will increase circulation of blood. Being warm also improves the muscle/brain communication as the nervous system responds to the warmth. The psychological effects of being warm are important too, resulting in improved sleep and feelings of relaxation. Notes of warning here however, if muscle damage/trauma is suspected avoid heat treatment till a few days following the incident. Again the time in the sauna/steam should be interspersed with cold blasts.
A towel that has been immersed in cold water can also be placed over your head whilst in the hot environment.
It is also important that dehydration does not occur when being immersed in a warm environment and the written safety rules of saunas and steam rooms should be observed at all times.

4. Massage
Massage has been used for thousands of years as a means of inducing deep relaxation, rebalancing the body and aiding the removal of waste products.
Different forms of massage will induce a different physiological response. It has benefits before, during and after exercise.
Post workout massage will increase circulation, therefore increasing effective removal of waste products from the muscles and supplying oxygen to them.

Massage will also help reduce and remove knots (adhesions) within the muscles. The effective treatment of these adhesions will often require a deeper style of massage.

If a person is consistently training, regular massage should be considered as an essential part of the training process as microtraumas sometimes caused within the muscles as a result of training can result in a strain if not treated.

In 1989 Athletics Weekly claimed that massage was a means of obtaining optimum athletic performance by:

• Allowing the athlete to compete with lower levels of stress on their body and at the same time perform more effectively and increase the workload of their muscles. It can also change moods or minimise pain.
• Improving the metabolic rate, i.e. improving cellular nutrition and toxic removal
• Help reduce pain and swelling after injury thus speeding up rehabilitation
• Help prevent injury, aiding recovery after training or competition and making the athlete less prone to stiffness.
• Enhance the cooldown period, cutting down the delayed onset of muscle soreness (DOMS) and fatigue

The Sports Massage Association explains the benefits as follows: -

IMPROVES TRAINING

• increasing blood flow through the tissues can improve the recovery process allowing the athlete to train more effectively and safely
• it assists the removal of waste products and helps supply the tissues with essential nutrients to aid recovery
• increasing the knowledge of the deep tissues means advice can be given on specific stretching, training and equipment to help improve performance

PREVENTS INJURY

• imbalances and damage in deep tissues can be detected earlier and potentially corrected before an injury develops

IMPROVES SELF AWARENESS

• through deep tissue massage, an athlete can learn to monitor their own condition and adjust their training accordingly

IMPROVES PERFORMANCE

• pre-event sports massage can stimulate circulation, calm nervous tension and help prepare the athlete for optimal performance

In conclusion, there are many forms of restoration that can be applied; there are many variables that have to be considered by a coach/trainer when recommending forms of recovery. Each individual will have different needs and will respond differently. Ideally a recovery and regeneration diary should be kept alongside a training diary for feedback. This will give feedback as what methods are most useful.

Enjoy your rest!

Refs:
EPTS Programme Design and Integrated Periodisation System Work book
Periodisation: Theory and Methodology of Training Tudor O Bompa, PhD
Accelerating Adaptation to Training Angela Calder
Sports Therapy Theoretical and Practical Thoughts and Considerations James Briggs

Have you ever wondered how improvements in performance take place? Is it by doing longer length training sessions or working at a higher intensity?

When does the improvement take place? During the sessions?

The answer to the above is no! Your improvements come during your rest and recovery periods!

Taking rest and building rest days into your training program is not the same as skipping a workout and there should be no guilt attached to taking planned rest days.

It is during the rest time that your body rebuilds and grows. It is here the improvements or adaptations take place. Muscle growth occurs in the recovery periods, as do other training adaptations. A general rule of thumb is that periods of high intensity/duration training should be followed by periods of planned rest. Now given adequate rest and recovery time the body will actually compensate (where the improvements take place) from the stimulus by repairing tissues. Given adequate recovery time the body will actually surpass former levels of strength, speed etc.This process is known as supercompensation. There are obviously other factors to take into consideration here too such as age, sleep, lifestyle and other stressors.

Without rest and recovery the risk of over training becomes an issue. Any form of training stimulus is recognised by the body as a stressor and the bodys response to any stress is to burn stored energy resulting in fatigue at some level.

Fatigue may take many forms:-

Lets look at muscular fatigue. Muscular fatigue occurs every time a micro trauma occurs within a muscle and can occur when there is an excessive volume of training or training of intensity where the client reaches failure. Signs of muscular fatigue might be soreness and stiffness up to one to two days after a work out.

This phenomenon is known as DOMS or delayed onset of muscle soreness. Taking a day or two off from working muscles that are sore might be adequate recovery but fitness professionals need to be aware that clients may be suffering form fatigue of the central nervous system. Recovery of the nerve cells takes up to seven times as long as muscle cells to completely recover from a training stimulus.

Nervous system fatigue can occur on two levels - in the central nervous system and within the peripheral nervous system: the first causing a change (a decrease) in the rate and speed of nerve impulses sent from the brain. The second, peripheral, occurs when the chemical bi products of high intensity training cause a decrease in the function of nerves in the muscles which then affects the twitch causes of this fatigue can be excessive volumes and intensities of training (adversely affecting the volume/intensity relationship) and inadequate recovery periods.

Signs to look for would include decreased motivation, decreased quality of movement and co ordination when exercising, difficulty sleeping and decreased focus or concentration.

There can be another form of fatigue in addition to the above-mentioned two; fatigue at a hormonal level, or endocrine fatigue. The central nervous system (CNS) breaks into two afferent and efferent; the first carrying messages from the receptors in the skin and muscles to the CNS, the second is the nerves carrying stimuli from the CNS to the muscles. The efferent further breaks into two the somatic and the autonomic nervous systems. The somatic system innervates skeletal muscle; the autonomic innervates smooth and cardiac muscle glands. The autonomic system further divides into sympathetic and parasympathetic systems. In general it has been found that chronic endocrine fatigue associated with overtraining is caused by over excitation of the sympathetic system for prolonged periods. Put simply this form of fatigue is a result of the bodys inability to cope with prolonged hormonal disruptions as a result of physical (and other) stressors.

Symptoms here might include lethargy, depression, fatigue not helped by sleep, decreased focus and memory, increase in blood pressure and resting heart rate,increased incidence of injury and increased irritability.

Fatigue can also be caused by underactivation of the parasympathetic system; however this is found to be much harder to detect or diagnose.

Making sure that the balance of work and recovery is important to ensure that improvements will take place and that fatigue does not set in. Working out the optimum time of rest and recovery to ensure supercompensation can be difficult especially if a personal trainer or coach is not planning training. The keeping of a training diary can provide good information to help tailor the programme to suit the trainees needs. It should be recognised that each individual will recover at different rates and therefore training programmes should always be designed to suit the individual.

There are various techniques used to enhance rest and recovery not covered here that will be touched upon in subsequent articles.

Some of the signs and symptoms listed above can also indicate other conditions and as such professional medical advice should always be sought if an individual is experiencing unusual symptoms or is unsure of their health status.

Paula Derwar - Part two next month!