Exercising is great for your health, but not so great for your body. Under normal circumstances, exercising is a good thing: it burns fat, improves circulation and appetite control, increases energy levels, and releases endorphins. However, when you exercise too intensely or too often it can be harmful to both your physical and mental health. Here are some tips on how to improve your exercise recovery.
1) Don’t exercise on an empty stomach.
While strenuous exercise can help burn fat when you do it while hungry your body will use protein and other nutrients that it needs to repair the damage to muscle tissue. It is always better to eat some sort of food before exercising, especially if you are going to do a tough workout or if the workout is very long in length.
2) Maintain adequate hydration (rule of thumb: drink 16 ounces of water for every 150 pounds of body weight).
If you are not properly hydrated, your body faces great challenges in repairing damaged muscle tissue. Drink enough fluid to last throughout your workout.
3) Don’t over-stretch muscles.
If you stretch too far while exercising, your muscles will be unable to repair the damage that occurred during the workout. If you do this, you can easily end up with a torn hamstring or other similar injuries.
4) Don’t overdo it.
Exercising when you are even slightly dehydrated or not recovering properly from exercise can lead to such injuries as muscle tears, strains, and sprains. This can happen if you do too much too soon. The best thing to do is to gradually work your way up to a high-intensity workout that builds muscle and burns fat at a consistent pace rather than continually pushing yourself beyond your limits.
While some workouts may require you to push yourself to your limits, there is always a safe way to do this. You can avoid injuries and other related problems if you heed the advice presented in this article.
