For those that live an active lifestyle, play sports, or live a life in the gym, we know what soreness feels like. In many ways, it can feel good – like a badge of honor for how hard you pushed yourself physically. Or maybe the horrible kind of soreness from acute or overuse injuries, which can take us out from doing the things we love.
Recovery is probably the most crucial but often neglected piece of the equation. How do you gain muscle? Work out harder? Drink more protein? These things can indirectly help, but when you lift weights or do strenuous activities, you are actually breaking muscle tissue down. It’s the recovery process that repairs and makes it stronger, and even bigger.
So whether you love to play in Pickleball tournaments, get a good WOD in at the CrossFit gym, or go running and hiking for hours, here are some tips to help you stay at the top of your game.
- Stay hydrated - Not only during the exercise or strenuous activity, but also during recovery. Many of us only drink when we are thirsty from physical activity. That is fine if you just want to avoid damage from dehydration, but staying hydrated during recovery can help your body flush toxins and waste, transport nutrients to cells and help regulate body temperature.
- Get Restorative Sleep - High level athletes value their sleep for a reason. This is the only time when your body is able to prioritize repairing itself. Your body releases HgH (Human Growth Hormone) to help your body recover. You produce it naturally. Yes, professional athletes take synthetic versions of this to get an edge, which is not something we recommend. But getting great quality sleep is crucial. Check out our blog HERE on tips for better sleep. And consider trying out Better Night sublingual drops if you need to improve your sleep quality.
- Reduce chronic inflammation - Acute inflammation (pain from an injury) is needed to help the body repair. It’s a normal function of the body. However, chronic inflammation can cause your body to not operate properly. Avoiding processed foods, sugar, alcohol, and for many even dairy and wheat can help reduce chronic inflammation in the body. There are many herbs like turmeric that have been shown to reduce inflammation, although they can require a big dose. Numerous studies show how regular usage of high quality CBD can help the body to reduce inflammation as well. Consider trying our Gel Caps, Gummies, or Day Drops as a supplement to a low inflammation diet to keep you recovering faster and performing better.
- Treat injuries and nagging pains - Especially overuse injuries in joints and tendons can really derail your goals. The items above will help your body heal faster, but for a stronger boost consider our Instant Relief Cream. It’s designed to work in two stages. The first stage is an arctic blast to immediately address acute pains. And when we say blast, we mean relief in seconds to help prevent tension from building even further. The second stage is a gradual unwinding, like a slow massage. It takes time to build up all of our tension so it makes sense that it takes time to truly release it.