Having a nice workout routine is only worth it if you do the proper things afterward. The actions you take after a workout can greatly impact your ability to slimmer down, gain muscle mass, and reduce any potential soreness.
This is called a post-workout routine and every professional athlete puts a lot of emphasis on. Without it, our energy levels will be down in the gutter and only make it harder for us to achieve our goals.
That’s why we’ve decided to do an article that talks about the 7 things you should immediately do after a workout.
Without further ado, let’s begin.
Table of Contents
1. Rehydration
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It’s safe to say that exercising can take a huge toll on our fluid levels. But even more so than that, rehydrating is one of the most important things you should immediately do after a workout.
But why is that? Well, the answer is quite simple. When we work out we spend a lot of fluids. Fluids are important for our bodies to function properly. Without them, we make it harder to achieve our goals. For example, rehydrating is important because it prevents muscle soreness, improves muscle flexibility, and builds strength.
Rehydrating with water is the best way to go about it. A great option is also to drink plenty of healthy drinks that impact our overall post-workout routine. The best ones to use are green or black tea, coconut water, and chocolate milk.
2. Healthy Snacks
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Working out takes not only liquids away from our bodies, but it also deprives us of energy. Our body uses food and converts it into energy. This is the energy that we spent when exercising.
So, it’s only natural that we replenish that much-needed energy. And what’s the best way to do it? Well, eating healthy food of course.
Grabbing a healthy snack after 40 minutes of finishing your workout can replenish your energy levels and improve the recovery process. The best snacks or foods for this are those that contain plenty of carbs and proteins.
And there is the real science behind it. For example, cars are great for recharging the energy levels because their primary focus is to restore glycogen.
Proteins, on the other hand, are well-known among the gym community as the primary source in aiding muscle recovery. By including proteins in your post-workout diet, you are effectively repairing muscle fibers and rebuilding the muscle.
3. Cooling Down
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An effective post-workout routine is to cool down. What this means is you essentially is to drop your heart rate back to normal. Our heart rate is increased gradually as we exercise.
This means that the heart pumps blood much faster and distributes it towards the entire body. But blood can pool in the lower extremities, which might deprive our upper body of the much-needed blood.
This makes us dizzy and uncomfortable. But the way we prevent this is by doing a cooldown routine. Not only that, but these activities can also lower stress.
4. Take Magnesium
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There is a very real chance that you aren’t taking magnesium as a post-workout routine.
But the reason why you’re not doing it doesn’t step from incompetence, but from not knowing what it does.
To put it shortly, magnesium is the ultimate supplement you need to relax your muscles after a nice workout. Apart from being great for your health, magnesium helps prevent soreness in your muscles.
Without it, we experience fatigue more as this is a mineral responsible for converting glycogen into glucose. Professional trainers are always recommending it to their trainees, as magnesium gives you the ability to perform much better.
If you want to know more about the various magnesium-based healthy products that exist on the market, then make sure to check this out.
5. Get A Massage
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Yet another post-workout tip is to get a massage immediately after finishing with your daily exercise routine.
But why is it so important? Well, experts suggest that a massage can drastically improve post-workout recovery and improve muscle strength.
If you have a personal trainer at your gym, then ask them to give you a rubdown after finishing your routine. It’s quite easy to do it but you’ll benefit so much from it.
6. Stretching
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Something that takes 10 additional minutes from your time, stretching is an important post-workout routine that everyone should do.
The reason why many recommend it is because it is yet another technique that focuses on “cooling down”. As we mentioned earlier, cooling down is just as important as the exercise itself.
By doing a 10-minute stretching after your exercises, you are preventing the risk of tearing up a muscle. Not only that, but you also make it possible to potentially increase your flexibility. Since our muscles are warm, they are quite easy to stretch, extend, and elongate.
This makes sure that you don’t sustain any post-workout injuries. To properly stretch, you need to focus on a couple of key muscle groups. Those are the hamstrings, glutes, hips, shoulders, and core muscles.
A 10-minute exercise break is more beneficial than you can ever imagine.
7. Self Care
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What better way to take care of your body than with a nice bath? Self-care is important after a workout as you make it possible for the body to de-stress after a hard and heavy exercise routine.
We put our bodies under a lot of stress whenever we lift weights, run the treadmill, or any other exercise drill for that matter. And, we also need to give it the proper care it needs afterward.
So, if you want to recover the right way after a hard day at the gym, then why not make yourself a nice bath? And, as we might have pointed out, not only are we recovering the right way but we’re also taking care of all the stress that comes in our lives on a daily bases.
The right way to recover is to focus on yourself, regardless if that means taking a bath or watching a movie.
