If you stumbled on this article, you have likely just done a few sets of burpees, box jumps, deadlifts, or even the dreaded handstand push-ups (what’s that even all about?).
These are just a few of the well-known CrossFit workouts that fitness enthusiasts become familiar with when participating in the sport. And each set of exercises brings with it its own set of aches and pains. Unlike other conventional sports, just about every muscle group is targeted during a tough CrossFit workout.
So, how do you properly recover from these strenuous, intense workout routines?
We get that there are many different things CrossFit athletes can do to help with their recovery process, from getting enough sleep to following a specialized diet and everything in between.
But this article will focus on something slightly different but equally important. Let’s look closer at the importance of using natural supplements, specifically a supplement that harnesses the natural healing attributes of L-carnosine to help your body recover properly between training sessions.
Muscle Recovery Takes Such a Long Time
CrossFit is defined as “an extreme fitness program that includes elements from various sports and types of exercise” (1). The reason why many athletes take such a long time to recover from CrossFit lies within the very definition of it. It’s an extreme fitness program.
Training sessions are designed to push athletes to their very max. They jump, run, climb, squat, pull, and push harder than ever. During these high-intensity training sessions, also known as HIIT-Workouts, muscle groups are broken down and built up again.
CrossFit sessions often damage muscle tissue as the exercises are completely different from conventional training regimes. Thus, recovery may take slightly longer than a track and field athlete’s recovery time.
Resting and Your Post-Workout Period
Getting proper rest between training sessions is probably one of the most important things any athlete can do. We’re not talking of active recovery here, where you engage in low-intensity workouts like stretches or slow walks after a training session.
We’re talking about completely staying away from anything resembling a kettlebell or battle rope. Some athletes have found that a good training schedule of an hour or two a day for 5 days a week with only 2 HIIT sessions scheduled is a balanced workout schedule.
This leaves them with two completely off days, where no training is done whatsoever. It’s during these rest days that soft tissue and ligaments heal.
Ligaments and tendons act as supporting structures that connect your muscles to your bone structure, and they often need more recovery time than large muscle groupings.
So, take time on these recovery days to pamper your muscles as much as possible. You can do light stretches in the morning or work with a foam roller to iron out as many knots as possible. But an even better idea is to use a carnosine sports gel that will really help you recover from strenuous exercise sessions these days.
Carnosine Helps Prevent Muscle Soreness
Carnosine is an amino acid that our body naturally produces.
It has a wide variety of benefits, ranging from anti-aging and anti-inflammatory properties to acting as a buffer between our muscles and the build of lactic acid.
Furthermore, studies have suggested that carnosine and L-carnosine may have beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system, improving blood flow, and protecting against heart disease.
However, our levels of carnosine deplete as we get older. Our bodies produce less and less of it as we age. That’s one of the reasons why it gets harder to recover from any form of exercise the older we get.
Chemipower has identified a real need in the sports nutrition market for a product that will deliver the right amount of anti-oxidant-rich carnosine to athletes who crave better recovery times.
CarnoSport concentrates Carnosine into a compact sports gel, ready to be applied directly to the muscles that need it most.
By applying it before your CrossFit routine, you’re prepping your muscle groups for the onslaught to come. The carnosine compound within the gel will get to work by acting as an anti-inflammatory for tendons and a buffer between your muscles and lactic acid.
This means you can keep going for longer without cramping up or having your ligaments and tendons inflamed.
Immediately after a training session, the gel can be reapplied. This will help reduce recovery times and the effects of DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness)
Does Carno Gel Replace Conventional Recovery Methods?
No, Carno Sport sports gel is not intended to replace good practices of sports recovery.
Rather, it’s been carefully developed in cooperation with Tartu University scientists and professional athletes to aid recovery. It acts as a supplement with no side effects, is 100% doping-free, and is scientifically proven to improve tendon, ligament, and joint health.
Keep in mind that Carnogel has been developed to be a sports supplement. Therefore, it picks up where conventional recovery methods end, enhancing the body’s natural healing process.
Know When To Take A Day Off
Knowing when to take a rest day is just as important as knowing how hard you can push your body when training for an event.
So, when is enough enough?
Listen to your body. It will tell you when you need to stop and take a rest day. Here are a few signs that you might want to look out for
1. You’re cramping earlier than usual
Everyone who exercises will cramp at some point. And while it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly why you’re cramping, we can narrow it down to two main reasons.
Firstly, you’re probably dehydrated or on the verge of dehydration. When we exercise, we sweat a lot. It’s our body’s natural way of cooling us down. Through perspiration, we also lose body fluids. A lack of fluids and electrolytes in our system will cause our muscle groups to cramp.
The second, and equally as common, is simply muscle fatigue. When your muscles get tired and overloaded, it disrupts the balance between two things in your muscles:
Firstly, Excitatory signals from something called “muscle spindles,” which tell your muscles to contract. And secondly, inhibitory signals from something called “Golgi tendon organs (GTO)” that normally help relax your muscles.
This imbalance between the “contract” and “relax” signals leads to a problem in a specific muscle area, resulting in a muscle cramp. But cramping earlier than usual is not normal, and each athlete needs to be able to identify when these signals are getting mixed and give their muscles a day or two to recover.
2. You’re sore at the start of your workout
Being sore a day or two after a serious workout is a clear indication of the DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness)
If you’ve been focusing on your upper body for a few days and feel that your arms, shoulders or chest area is too sore to target again, move your workout to another part of your body that won’t cause you as much discomfort.
Target your calves, thighs or glutes with lower-body workouts. This will help your upper body muscle groupings recover from previous workouts.
3. An irregular or high resting heart rate.
When exercising, your heart rate will increase as it’s supplying oxygen-rich red blood cells to muscle groups that need it most.
But when you’re not exercising, your heart rate should be steady at 55 or 60 beats per minute. But when your resting heart rate (RHR) gets closer to 100 or is irregular, it’s a clear sign that something isn’t quite right.
One reason for this is stress; our bodies can become stressed out due to too much exercise.
A smartwatch or device will tell you your heart rate and what it should be according to your BMI (Boday Mass Index).
4. You’re sick
If you’re coming down with the flu or feverish, it’s best to take a few days off from your general exercise routine. When we’re sick, our bodies simply don’t function as they should. Our muscles are weaker, our chest and nasal cavities are clogged and our breathing is hampered.
Because of the intense nature of most CrossFit exercises, your body will really struggle to keep up with the demand placed on specific muscle groupings.
5. You’re doing it because you have to (not because you want to)
If you’re not feeling it, just take a break. Do something outdoors or spend time with friends and family. Do anything to distract you from the mundane exercise routine that’s getting you down.
Some athletes will take a few weeks off and then come back even stronger. This way of thinking will prolong your CrossFit career and help you stay positive about the grind.
Conclusion
CrossFit can be quite addictive. Athletes get hooked on endorphins released after an intense exercise session. That’s not a bad thing. Studies have shown that when people feel fit and active, their outlook on life is much better. So, the more you’re able to train, the better your mood.
But as we said, keeping up with a regular exercise routine can be challenging. From sore muscles to inflamed tendons and ligaments, a lot can slow even the most seasoned Cross Fitter down.
Take time to recover by scheduling dedicated rest days and give your body the time it needs to heal and rebuild. And supplement your body’s natural healing process by adding a carnosine gel to help speed up recovery.
Carnossport gel is an awesome product that will speed up your recovery process between CrossFit routines and even help prevent future damage to muscles, tendons and ligaments.
