Probably, everyone is aware of the effect of exercising! Cycling, jogging, lifting weights and training as hard as you can to improve your fitness, build muscle and lose fat. People quickly get into a real fitness obsession, and many barely allow themselves a day off from sports. But it is easy to forget that recovery after sports, also called "restday", is of utmost importance. In fact, this is the phase in which the body starts all the desired processes to build muscle and lose fat!
During intense stress on the muscles caused by sports, thousands of small fibers in the muscles are torn, adrenaline is released, and forces are mobilized, thus boosting fat burning. It is only in the period after sports, during which one does not engage in any sporting activity, that regeneration begins. Only when the body is allowed to rest, the body starts to restore the regular destruction of the muscles and they start to grow. Also, the metabolism boosted by the sporting activity continues to be active after the sport, and it is really active!
In this phase, the body needs rest above all, so that it can focus on the processes of recovery that have been set in motion and not be immediately put back into battle mode by a repeated sports program. The body needs important nutrients during the regeneration phase, and it will demand them! The feeling of hunger increases because the muscles need carbohydrates and protein to heal properly. Also, increased thirst occurs to be able to use the nutrients and trace elements contained in the water and replenish the store of fluid, which was sweated out during exercise. Not only to maintain the essential functions of the body, but also to ensure optimal regeneration, the body needs rest and nourishment.
Sore muscles are one of the clearest signs the body sends us to tell us to "take a break!" At the same time, the right way to recover is not difficult to implement, actually quite the opposite! One or two days without sports, normal everyday activities, enough sleep and a healthy diet, that's what makes the perfect recovery!
Citation
- Kissler (13. 03.2019): Recovery nach dem Sport - So regeneriert dein Körper richtig. In: Braineffect. (Abgerufen am 26.04.22). https://www.brain-effect.com/magazin/recovery-regenerieren.
- Dr. Hoppe (04.09.2020): Regeneration & Recovery: Warum es so wichtig ist, manchmal einfach nichts zu tun. In: Max Prosion. (Abgerufen am 26.04.22). https://maxxprosion.de/regeneration-recovery-warum-es-so-wichtig-ist-manchmal-einfach-nichts-zu-tun/.