After you’ve finished an intense strength training session at AFAC gym, you might be tempted to spend the next day or two resting so that your muscles can recover.
But is sitting around doing nothing for a couple days really the best approach? Many experts say no. Instead of being completely inactive, it can be more beneficial to move during your recovery period. This is called an “active recovery” because it keeps your blood flowing to help your muscles rebuild after your rigorous workout.
As long as you’re not in a lot of pain after your workout — which could be the sign of an injury that needs medical attention — an active recovery comes with several benefits. Read this blog to learn about the advantages of active recovery days, the different types of active recovery, and some active recovery exercises you can try at our Thornton gym.
The Benefits of Active Recovery at the Gym
About 24-48 hours after a challenging workout at the gym — especially a strength training workout — it’s common for us to feel symptoms like delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), inflammation, and physical fatigue. These symptoms are caused by microscopic tears in the muscle fibers. In response to those tiny tears, your body sends good nutrition and blood to the area, heals the muscle fibers, rebuilds, and makes the muscles stronger. Essentially, you must break muscle down to build it back up stronger, and this can be a painful process.
When you’re super sore after a gym workout, you might want to lay down and binge-watch your favorite show until the pain goes away. But research suggests that staying active, even when you’re sore, can help you recover faster after a difficult workout. The benefits of active recovery include:
- Keeping your muscles flexible
- Increasing blood flow and nutrition to your muscles
- Reducing muscle soreness
- Helping you maintain your exercise routine
What Is Passive Recovery?
During passive recovery, you keep your body completely at rest while you wait for the soreness to dissipate. This may involve sitting around or just general inactivity. Passive recovery is important if you:
- Feel very tired – physically or mentally – after exercising
- Are trying to heal from an injury, surgery, or other medical condition
- Are in so much pain that you suspect an injury, such as a strained muscle, sprained ligament, or overworked joint
Anytime you feel like you might have sustained an injury after exercise, see a doctor as soon as possible to receive treatment.
The Three Types of Active Recovery After Gym Workouts
It seems counterintuitive, but studies have shown that active recovery exercises may help muscles feel less fatigued so that you can continue exercising and feel better during your workouts, even when you’re sore. Below are three different types of active recovery workouts that can help.
Cooldowns Following Workouts at the Gym
After a tough workout, sometimes all you want to do is stop and sit still or even lie down. But if you keep moving, it can help you to recover. Try to cool down gradually. Make sure you’re working at no more than 50% of your maximum effort and gradually reduce your effort from there. For example:
- After a run or sprint on the treadmill or elliptical — try a short, light jog or walk for 10 minutes.
- After weightlifting or doing high intensity interval training (HIIT) — try riding a stationary bike at an easy pace for a few minutes.
Studies recommend spending about 6-10 minutes after your intense workout session performing some type of cooldown active recovery for best results.
Between Exercise Sets at the Gym
Research also suggests that active recovery can benefit how you perform during your workout. We’ve all seen people who sit on the bench scrolling through their phones in between sets of weightlifting, but studies show that it might be more beneficial to partake in a low-intensity activity like walking around the gym or doing dynamic stretches, balance training, and bodyweight exercises in between sets, and then hit it hard on your next set.
Essentially, active recovery between sets is spending your rest interval doing a low- or medium-intensity activity that works out a different part of your body. Alternatively, you can drop the intensity of the exercise you’re doing during the rest period, but still continue to do it. For instance, if you’re on a spin bike, you might go hard and then take a 90-second recovery at a lower gear and cadence before ramping your intensity back up.
On Your Rest Days Following a Strenuous Workout at the Gym
In the 24-48 hours after your intense workout at the gym, you can participate in active recovery days. Active recovery during your rest days will help your muscles rebound and can shorten the time that you’re sore.
An active recovery day should include different activities than what you usually do at the gym, and you shouldn’t be working at maximum effort. Instead, you should go slow and not push yourself too hard. The key is to find a cardiovascular activity that keeps your heart rate at 30-60% of your maximum. Some examples of active recovery workouts at the gym include:
- Yoga — The yoga classes at AFAC gym can help stretch sore muscles, increase flexibility, and reduce inflammation and stress.
- Walking — Walking on the treadmill or using an elliptical trainer at a leisurely pace can enhance blood flow and help with recovery. Even a few minutes of movement during the day or two after a tough workout is enough to promote circulation and reduce stiffness and soreness.
- Cycling — Cycling at a leisurely pace is a great way to get in an active recovery. It’s low impact and doesn’t put pressure on your joints. You can cycle on an upright bike, recumbent bike, or spin bike.
- Foam Rolling — Active recovery isn’t limited to movement. You can also stretch and roll a foam roller over parts of your body to relieve tightness, increase your range of motion, and reduce inflammation. AFAC gym offers a wide variety of foam rollers for our members to use. Please see us at the front desk for more information.
- Cryotherapy — As a member of AFAC gym, one of the best active recovery tools at your disposal is our cryotherapy chamber. During the cryotherapy session, which usually takes 3 minutes or less, your body is exposed to extremely cold temperatures. The benefits of cryotherapy include increased blood flow throughout the body, numbing of pain, relief from muscle soreness, increased flexibility, and quicker recovery after workouts.
The Goal of Active Recovery at AFAC Gym
The goal of any recovery technique is to help the body return to normal. Once you’ve fully recovered from a rigorous workout, you should feel refreshed and ready for your next workout. A faster recovery means more workouts and ultimately, better results at the gym.
To find out more about active recovery workouts at AFAC gym, please consult with our personal trainers and staff. We’re here to assist and support you as you work to achieve your fitness goals.
To learn more about becoming a member of AFAC gym — the best gym in Thornton, Colorado — please stop by or give us a call anytime. We’ll be happy to assist you. You can also contact our gym owner, Susan, at 720-849-0245 or susan@adventurefitness.club for assistance.
