How to recover from a tough workout – CNET

Listen up, all you weekend warriors, gym-goers and anyone else that is vaguely interested in working out or getting fitter. If you’re still falling victim to the mindset that pain is gain, I’ve got news for you. Scientists are starting to discover that actively investing in post-workout recovery is just as, if not more, important than the time you spend in the gym. Fitness technology is catching onto this trend and there are many promising products that allow you to bring cutting-edge recovery techniques into your own home.

Read more: Heart-rate tracking is the secret to getting fit. Here’s how to use it

Why is recovery important?

Your muscles don’t actually grow while you are working out; they grow while resting in between sessions. Exercise is essentially stress, and when you repeatedly stress your body it becomes better adapted to respond to the stimulus. 

Working out, specifically weightlifting and body weight exercises, creates micro-tears in your muscles. If you don’t give them adequate time to heal, then the tears grow and your muscles feel inflamed, swollen and exhausted. Not allowing yourself adequate recovery time can lead to decreased performance and even overtraining syndrome. Overtraining syndrome, or OTS, is ugly. It compromises your immune system, makes you feel exhausted and causes chronic joint and muscle pain.

Recovery is super important in the workout process. Not only does it help you avoid all of those negative side effects, but when those micro-tears heal, your muscles grow.

If you’re more into cardio, this still applies. Aerobic exercise, especially running, follows the same progressive overload principle as weightlifting. This is a fancy way of saying that the training programs are also designed to pile an increasing workload onto your body. Then, you recover, and your body adapts to better respond to that stress.

The specific adaptations depend on what specific exercise you do, but in layman’s lingo we generally know the adaptation effect as getting “into better shape.” For example, if you run a lot, cycle, or do another aerobic activity, your VO2 max increases. Essentially, this means that your body is able to use more oxygen while working out, which boosts endurance. 

If you lift weights or do body weight exercise, the main adaptation is called muscle hypertrophy and increases the size of your muscles to make you stronger. The list of physical changes your body makes after working out is endless, but the point is that they all take time and rest to occur. Ergo, if you don’t give yourself time to recover, you won’t get as fit.

When athletes (and yes, you) are able to recover quickly, they can hit the next workout with their full ability and maximize performance. If you don’t take enough rest after each session, you won’t give your body enough time to reap the full effects of your exercise and may even fall victim to overtraining. 

If you enhance your recovery, your body will adapt better to the stress you’re putting yourself through and you may even get fitter for the same workout intensity and frequency.

Why high-tech recovery?

While old-school recovery techniques, like getting enough sleep or eating more protein are tried and true, high-tech equipment will up your game and get you ready to hop back in the gym in record time.

The tools listed below will aid your efforts in a wide variety of ways, including everything from allowing you to perform fancy massage techniques on sore muscles to transforming body heat into radiation that literally helps your cells grow faster. Plus, who doesn’t want more fancy toys to help their fitness pursuits?

These devices are all tools that you can use at home, so forget the days of expensive spa treatments and start recovering from the comfort of your couch. 

Spryng 

Spryng’s soon to be available calf compression device works by helping get rid of that swelling that makes your legs feel sore, increasing blood flow to your muscles and helping them heal faster. Plus, the gentle squeeze feels nice after a long day on your feet.

Spryng is currently crowdfunding on Indiegogo, with an expected delivery in September 2019.

HyperIce Fitness Roller

HyperIce’s vibrating foam roller combines a massaging technique with vibration therapy for a two-in-one punch to your sore muscles. Both myofascial release (aka foam rolling) and vibration therapy help loosen tight muscles, providing relief from soreness and improving blood flow. 

While anyone who has used a foam roller knows that it hurts in the moment, the pain is worth it when you wake up the next morning feeling amazing.

UnderArmour Athlete Recovery Sleepwear

UnderArmour’s sleepwear has technology that absorbs the heat your body emits and reflects it back as far infrared radiation that encourages cell regrowth. Cell regeneration is a key part of muscle growth, because when the muscle repairs itself to grow stronger it needs new tissue and more cells. While the technology feels straight out of a movie, the research suggests it is legit. And if Tom Brady’s in, I’m in. 

Use this for an effort-free way to feel even more fresh after a great night’s sleep. UA’s Athlete Recovery Sleepwear comes in shirts, shorts and pants, available for men and women. There’s even Recovery bedding available.

ThermX

ThermX’s foam rollers can be heated up in the microwave or cooled in the freezer. While cooling muscles is slightly better for recovery, heat has also been shown to be effective at relaxing and reducing swelling.

The Wave Tool

The Wave Tool combines handheld massage therapy with IASTM, which stands for Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization and is exactly what it sounds like. The tool helps break up scar tissue from old injuries and keeps your muscles loose. It has eight different surfaces that can be used on every part of your body, from aching wrists to a sore back.

Theragun

Theragun uses percussive technology to increase blood flow and loosen sore muscles. It’s pricey, but professional athletes like NBA superstar Kyrie Irving swear by it. This rather aggressive-looking tool is like a massage on steroids, offering intense vibrations meant to give your muscles a deep tissue massage.

If you want a Thergun, but the price is too high, check out their older models which are available for much less cash. And, Theragun isn’t the only percussive massage gun either — there are several other products that promise the same results.

NormaTec

NormaTec wraps around your entire legs (or arms, depending on what system you buy), delivering a pulsing motion that mimics the pumping of your muscles. It increases blood flow, making you more flexible and lowering your pain threshold. Elite athletes like gymnast Simone Biles use it. And, it looks like you’re wearing half of an astronaut suit, so there’s really no reason not to get this.