Find time for a cool down post-workout. Your muscles will thank you in the morning!

 

post-workout recovery

You’ve pushed yourself to your limit and flopped onto the ground. It’s rest and recovery time, right? Wrong.

That burning sensation that built up in your muscles is lactic acid: a waste product that results from the incomplete breakdown of carbohydrates as you exercise.

When energy is required to perform an activity, it is supplied from the breakdown of the energy-rich molecule adenosine triphosphate (ATP). The lactic acid system is capable of releasing energy to resynthesise ATP without the involvement of oxygen, but only for a limited time. After an intense lactic acid workout, walk it out; active recovery removes lactic acid twice as quickly as passive recovery.

Your morning coffee can wait; find time to squeeze in a cool-down. Your muscles will thank you tomorrow.

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