Maximising your post-workout routine

Workout benefits aren’t reserved for the gym, in fact your post-workout routine is just as important as the exercise itself for getting results. We chatted to Aquanation personal trainer, Chris Pattison, on how to maximise your post-workout routine.

Futureproofing

You’ve worked hard so after a gym sesh you’d be forgiven for wanting to chill out max and relax all cool. But putting a little bit of effort into your recovery goes a long way. For Pattison, any post-workout routine should involve some sort of stretching and/or mobility.

“Think about the duress the rest of the body has been put under while you were training, the tearing of the muscle and stress the joints are coming under, the repetition of movements will all cause your muscles to get tight,” explains Pattison. He adds that it’s because of this duress that “it’s important to recover efficiently, so the next time you train you train at that optimum level.”

So yeah, hard earned work not only earns some R&R, it needs it. However, recovery is not bingeing TV shows or sitting at your desk. It’s when you’re getting some serious zzz’s. “Our sleep patterns are super important, that’s where our muscles generate growth and repair and to train at the highest level day after day, you need to be able to repair and restore,” Pattison advises.

What you do straight after your workout is really important. “I always recommend that if you have time after your workout, do a decent cool down or mobility stretching, it brings your heart rate back down and it lengthens your muscles,” the personal trainer advises.

Pattison says many people forego a proper recovery session after they hit the gym. “A lot of people when they workout they focus on the contraction movement, but you want to lengthen and stretch them out afterwards, so you can train at optimum level the next workout.”

And let’s be real, none of us have a good session when we’re stiff and sore. For Pattison, it’s all about training smarter rather than harder. “Optimise your training by incorporating mobility and flexibility - stretching, food and sleep can have an impact on how you recover.”

Take a dip

If you’re unsure whereto start with your post-workout routine, Pattison has some great tips. “Swimming is great because it brings your body temperature back down, there’s still some gentle resistance (like a resistance band) to work the muscles out and brings the heartrate down.”

No time for a swim? Jump in the shower says the personal trainer. “Cold temperatures minimise the swelling to your muscles and accentuate the healing through healing, so it doesn’t have to be a swim, you can jump in a cold shower for a few minutes.”

If swimming’s not your thing, Pattison says any sort of cooldown whether that’s a stretch or a slow walk on the treadmill will be beneficial. “Any sort of cool down that is a cool down is just as important as the work that you’ve actually done because it brings your heartrate, blood pressure and body temperature down.”

Eat up

Fuelling up for your future workouts is the message Pattison is keen to share. “We talk about food as fuel and if we’re trying to grow muscle we need to fuel it.”

The personal trainer recommends trying to get some sort of fuel into your body within the hour is optimal. And skipping meals will absolutely be detrimental. “Some people have the misconception that if their goal is weight loss they won’t fuel their body properly afterwards, yes your body will try and get its energy stores from fat cells and fat stores but the chances are you’re going to feel more fatigued and won’t be able to train effectively or potentially at all the next day or two days afterwards.”

Still, the personal trainer warns against devouring grub like you’re in an eating competition. “Give your body what it needs not what it wants,” advises Pattison. He adds it’s important to “be careful of what you eat but also the amount you eat because you can have too much of a good thing and that can lead to excess calories, especially if you’re just starting or coming back into exercise.”