Recovery between workouts

It’s been awhile since you joined your Énergie Cardio fitness centre. To achieve your goals, you rely heavily on strength training, cardio exercises and your flexibility. However, many of you often neglect the rest period between workouts.

Some of the benefits of resting are:

• Maintaining homoeostasis, i.e., the balance of internal conditions in the human body (temperature, hormones, etc.)

• Refuelling your energy (carbohydrates, protein)

• Restoring cell and enzymatic functions

Here are some simple, effective strategies to maximize these benefits:

• Focus on eating healthy and meet your training goals for the boost you need to go the extra mile during your training sessions. When in doubt, consult Canada’s Food Guide.

• Drink plenty of water to rehydrate after breaking a sweat (3.7 litres for men and 2.7 litres for women).

• Sleep 8–9.5 hours every night to promote the development and recovery of physiological functions, including nervous system functions.

• Give yourself time to relax so you can temporarily take your mind off things and take a step back to consider your training goals.

Put these recovery tips into practice and you’ll see improvements in your training. Remember: train intelligently, train intensively and recover properly.

Jean-Denis Thomson, B.Sc.

Training Department Director