Most people who know how to weight train are adept at torturing themselves in the gym. They must also, however, learn how to give themselves the "spa" treatment in order for their muscles to recover and grow to be stronger.
There is more written about how to perform strength training workouts than about recovery. Mostly everything you read about weight training is about how to get a good workout, what is the best method to work a particular muscle group, how to get a good pump, etc. Although it is true that the purpose of a strength training workout is to safely break down tissue as quickly as possible, it is also true that if this is carried too far, you may eventually suffer from overtraining. Muscle tissue is not being built up during a workout, it is being broken down. The recovery phase is the part of the muscle building process that makes the muscle stronger, not the workout, and is often overlooked.
Recovery Lesson #1: Avoid Overtraining
To avoid overtraining you must learn how muscles recover and grow. Before you begin a strength training workout, warm up properly. Perform exercises strictly. Do not overdo an exercise. Know when to stop doing repetitions and when not to do that extra set. Keep in mind during a workout that although you may have planned to do four sets for a particular exercise, three sets may be just fine–or even two. It may be a good idea to go a week or two at half volume. This is known as detraining.
Here are a few tips:
Recovery Lesson #2: Take a Layoff
Last but not least, when in doubt, take a recovery week off from training. Missing a certain number of reps, tiredness and injuries are some symptoms indicating you may be over-trained. Another lesser known symptom of overtaining is if you are incessantly thinking about training all the time and at the same time experience a constant fatigue and mistake this psycho-physical condition as some lofty athletic attainment. Don’t work-out umpteen days in a row without a break. You should be more or less fresh and pain free before every workout. If you are chronically tired then the wisest thing to do is to take some time off. As you gain experience in weight training, you will develop a knowing of when to take a layoff. This knowing is what separates the men from the boys. There are many accounts of strength athletes taking a three week rest and then coming back to train to break new records.
Recovery Lesson #3: It’s Always Two Steps Forward and One Step Back
On the other hand, you may not come back stronger after a three week layoff. You may have to work up to where you were before but at least most if not all of your border line injuries involving tendons and ligaments will have fully recovered during the layoff. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is normal the next day after a workout but sharp pains in your joints are not. The way of progress with strength training workouts and recovery is always two steps forward and one step back.
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