It's great to have an intense workout. It really helps your body flush out all the bad stuff that exposure to chemicals, bad habits, and basically everyday living gives you. Working out intensely, regularly, and with proper diet and good sleep really goes a long way in flushing out all the nasty toxins that accumulates in your body over time. However, there is one little nasty side effect from working out regularly and intensively. It's called lactic acid.
Lactic Acid Buildup
When we exercise, our bodies need lots of energy. The body gets that energy from glucose in a process called glycolysis. The glucose is broken down into another substance called pyruvate. Oxygen helps shuttle the pyruvate all over the body for more energy, but not all the pyruvate is broken down. The leftover pyruvate is turned into lactate. This happens a lot more often than you think, especially if there isn't enough oxygen to shuttle the pyruvate around. The excess lactate is what forms lactic acid. Enough buildup of lactic acid can cause muscle soreness, and muscle acidity in your muscles. Of course, such things don't feel good, and can lead to all sorts of nasty complications. Complications your muscles and body will pay for and feel in the long run. Lactic acid is a big reason why you feel sore and you feel muscle fatigue after a workout. All those sore and aching muscles are simply lactic acid that has built up after your taxing workout.
The only way to stop this lactic acid from building up, is by recovering and resting. A period where the body will not exercise, and basically rest is needed for your system to clear itself of all the lactic acid. Once this is done, your body will be able to resume at peak physical performance. This only reinforces the fact that your body needs to rest and recover after any intense kind of workout.
Rest and Recovery are Essential
Because of all this, it is very important that you get a lot of rest after a strenuous and intense workout. Resting is the only way your body will properly clear out all the lactic acid. There are some good ways you can help your body along to get good rest. It is best not to ignore the importance of rest and recovery, and to follow these good tips after a particularly taxing workout.
Get Structured Rest
One good rule of thumb to follow when resting is that more rest is not necessarily better. It's all about the quality, not the quantity. If you get too much rest, you could stagnate, get lazy and simply not work out anymore. Of course, no one wants that. You want to bounce back stronger after resting, not have it actually become an obstacle to working out. It would be best to simply incorporate structured time periods to rest, like a down week, after a week of intense working out. In this week, it would be good to focus more on resting than working out. You would not need to cut exercising completely. Just cut it down for a short period of time, to allow your body to rest and recover. Once that's done, you can resume your normal routine. You can simply repeat this cycle to give your body time to heal.
The Importance of a Good Massage
Taking a good Thai massage after a strenuous workout is one of the best treats you can give your aching muscles. A good massage helps your body, and is so efficient, because it gives you a prolonged
and structured time to rest. The body and mind is in a complete state of relaxation and inertness. This gives it all the time it needs to clear that nasty lactic acid.
Sleep is good, but a massage is so structured that it can help your body and mind relax more efficiently. There is no tossing and turning to get the right spot in bed to fall asleep. The massage induces relaxation so well, that even your mind focuses on just relaxing. This is a big thing, because it is the mind that powers you to work out and achieve your goals. Just to stay fit requires tremendous concentration and willpower. All that focus can also drain your mind, and a good massage will condition an overly-stimulated mind to just ease off and relax.
Just remember to also move a little after the massage, as the body also needs to recover from the massage itself. Moving a little bit will help avoid stiffness and promote flexibility after the massage. The more intense your workout is, the more intense the massage can be.
Stay Hydrated
Staying hydrated before, during, and after exercise is of the utmost importance. Your body will lose a lot of its fluids during working out because of all the sweat you will produce. Perspiring will cause you to sweat out a lot of toxins, but also a lot of the fluids you need to function properly. Because of this, it is very recommended to stay hydrated. Drink two liters of water a day, and even more, if you are exercising. It is the only way for your body to regain all those lost fluids and perform optimally.
Get Good Sleep
While getting a good massage is an efficient way to rest, you still cannot overlook the importance of good sleep. Sleep is essential for the body to perform the daily tasks of waking. Sleeping good is a very good way for your muscles to repair themselves and get the rest they need. Accumulating a sleep debt, or a lack of 8 hours of daily sleep will hamper your performance, working out. It can even have terrible consequences on your heart. For this reason, it is essential to have at least 8 hours of quality sleep. It would also be a good idea to invest on this, and get a good bed, comfortable pillows and mattresses to encourage quality sleep.