Active recovery

Maximising recovery time is a vital part of reaching peak performance

Regular rides or multi-day sportives can take their toll on the muscles, energy levels and mental sharpness if you don’t devote decent time to proper recovery. In professional circles the focus on getting high-quality recuperation ranges from post-ride recovery shakes and masseurs to ice baths and specially formulated mattresses. The ability to rest effectively so that you can get back on the bike within 12 hours of a day-long effort in the saddle and give the same again and again has become as integral to the success of the top teams as technical advances and physiological sports science. Good, effective recuperation with the correct levels of energy replacement and mental and physical rest can be achieved by riders of all standards who learn lessons from those at the elite level.

01 PRIORITISING SLEEP

Blue light emitted by gadgets fools the brain into thinking it’s still daylight, disrupting your circadian rhythm. Much more is made of practising good ‘sleep hygiene’ among athletes. Switch off your gadgets, cool the room, put up a blackout blind if needs be and read a book to naturally induce sleep onset latency.

02 POST-RIDE NUTRITION

Protein is essential for recovery, as we all know, but after a tough session your body will have depleted its glycogen stores too. To replenish them, eat easily digestible carbohydrate – white rice, bananas, cereals. It’s also important that your protein source is rich in leucine, an essential amino acid found in meat and dairy products; however, tofu, beans, seeds and eggs contain it too.

03 REHYDRATION STATION

Rehydrating after exercise is essential if you want to perform your best the following day. Even a small amount of dehydration can result in diminished performance. This is even more critical when the weather is warm and you’ve had a long day in the saddle. It’s not just about replacing fluid, however, when you sweat you also loose electrolytes. Aim to drink 1.5 times more fluid than you’ve lost. This should contain carbs as well as 60 mmol/l of sodium (for non-chemists, check the packaging of your tablets).

04 GRAB GADGETS

Some pros will turn to tools that speedup their recovery, including compression socks and pneumatic boots. The evidence for the effectiveness of these is questionable – we’re certainly operating in the marginal gains territory. Cover the big three recovery bases first: rest, replenish and rehydrate – then use these more novel approaches as suits.

05 GET A HAND

Teams will have a masseuse travelling with them – while this is not something the average amateur rider can call upon, getting the occasional sports massage during a ride season can help with overall recovery. Ideally, it needs to focus on the

IN PROFESSIONAL CIRCLES THE FOCUS IS ON GETTING HIGH QUALITY RECUPERATION

large power-house muscles – the rectus femoris, hip flexors and gluteals. Plus those areas that can become taut and troublesome after hours in the saddle, such as the neck and lower back.

06 STRETCH THINGS OUT

Stretching is widely debated when referring to recovery. If you are going to use it, then post exercise, after a warm shower is a good time. The data suggests that static stretching pre workout can reduce performance rather than improve it, again, this is widely debated. I would consider a foam roller, which has been shown to reduce muscular soreness (much like massage) and could improve performance the following day.