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Yay! Welcome to my new followers--where did YOU guys come from? Welcome, hope you enjoy Fit this, girl! Somedays after a long run or grueling workout all we want to do is lay on the couch and take it easy -- A REST DAY! However, sometimes, what our body needs is just the opposite. Everyone knows that rest periods are important, they help rebuild muscles & build up energy stores. But taking a day of "active rest" like biking, walking, swimming or even stretching is a great way to continue to perform well and even boost our performance!! This week, the week after my half marathon, I spent most of it in active rest. After much foam rolling, stretching and soaking over the weekend, I took a loooong walk on Sunday. It was a fantastic way to keep moving at a brisk pace, keep my legs warmed up and the blood pumping! I was a bit leisurely too: I stopped for coffee and stopped to snap some fun fall pics!  before the walk with my friend the foam roller!  At the lake!  Lake of the isles Active rest like walking or stretching keeps the blood moving through our body and muscles which reduces soreness and inflammation! By more rapidly cycling through the body during active recovery, our blood is carrying waste products more quickly through our system than if we were sedentary.  I spent some time biking at the gym! Spin was cancelled about 4 min after this pic, but I biked anyway! In essence we can recover faster and have better results when we are actively resting by taking part in low-impact, light movement and exercise. This also means that we will be able to train at a higher intensity and improve our skill faster and with better results. The quicker and better we recover, the sooner we are out there again tackling our next challenge.  At my first gyrokinesis class at Awake Pilates Studio! Gyrokinesis is all about moving from your center, being fluid & creating space. (sweet blog post to come!) A lot of runners specifically will take an active rest day or cross training day before their biggest run of the week and Runners World says, doing this will keep you feeling fresh and ready without over-training. This is especially helpful if you have had increase in milage or particularly hard workouts that same week. Remember if you ARE injured, feel your muscles are pulled, strained, sprained or some part of you IS on the brink of BEING injured, a true rest day is a must. Pushing through injury pain is not a smart way to train: Ice, hydrate, stretch if you can and give your muscles a true rest.  Quick-- call the Bone Dr! Aside from active rest, stretching and all the other wonderful things to do while you are recovering, visiting the chiropractor is one of them!! I am a huge fan of my chiropractor and went back this week to get a readjustment and evaluation, it had been a while. Chiropractic medicine is not a bunch ofwho-halike some MD's would have you believe. When I first went to my chiropractor it was because I was concerned about the amount of checking and hitting we did in Roller Derby and I didn't want to aggravate the chance of getting fibromyalgia, a genetic disease my Mom has. It is characterized by long-term, body-wide pain and tender points in joints, muscles, tendons, and other soft tissues. One thing that can trigger its onset is trauma. If you have ever seenroller derby, you know the kind of trauma I mean (if you haven't SHAME on you, clickHEREand GO!) . Once my visits started, my Dr. found out I have struggled with weak and poor ankles --I was always spraining them. He told me that as my ligaments would stretch or tear during severe sprains (as was always happening to me) it also moved the bone or joint of my ankle out of place.  If that joint was never put back in place correctly and SOON, the same injury would occur over and over again. Sounds about right to me! Since going to him over the last 2 years, I have never sprained my ankle again & I was able to stop wearing ankle braces entirely while I skated and ran--this was a HUGE step toward total health for me, I had worn ankle braces since high school for every sport! Plus, I sleep better and my spine and back feel wonderful. Be sure and get some rest--active rest!! Have you added the Bone Dr. to your routine of active rest and recovery?   |
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