5 tips on how to recover tired muscles

Recovery is essential after exercise, as tissues need to be repaired and you need to replenish your strength. As a general rule, it takes 24 to 48 hours for muscles to recover, especially after doing anaerobic training.

When your muscles are tired and perhaps a little inflamed, muscle fatigue, aka muscle stiffness, occurs. To avoid this, as mentioned above, proper recovery is vital, with a healthy diet, hydration and rest being key to this.

Tips on muscle recovery

There are many recovery methods, and the right one for you will depend on your ability to recover. However, the following tips are highly recommended:

• Drinking water before, during and after exercise is essential for your performance and your body’s recovery. Being well hydrated is vital for proper metabolic and nutrient transport processes, where water is essential.
• Eating well is essential when it comes to recovering from physical exertion, as it restores energy to the body. It is best to supply the body with proteins, vitamins, minerals and carbohydrates to help restore your muscles. Therefore, after exercising, you can eat protein-rich foods such as eggs, chicken, tuna, almonds or chia, and add 50 grams of carbohydrates, such as pasta, rice or banana, to restore your glucose levels.
• Stretching after training is the simplest and quickest way to help muscles recover.
• Finish training with active recovery. It is important not to stop suddenly; you should finish the workout with some gentle cardio, walking or cycling slowly for 5-10 minutes, as this gentle movement improves circulation, promoting nutrient transport and waste removal, and helping the muscles to repair themselves and recover more quickly.
• Sleep and rest. While we sleep, the body produces growth hormone (GH), which is largely responsible for tissue growth and repair. You don’t necessarily need 8 hours of sleep; it depends on each individual and your body’s ability to recover. The important thing is to make sure it is a deep sleepso that you wake up feeling rested and full of energy.

In short, to recover your muscles you should focus on hydration, diet and rest.