It’s a common misconception that when someone says they’re taking a “recovery day”, it means they are taking a break from activity. Recovery is so much more than “just resting”, it’s the active process your body uses to:
- Re-fuel what you lost such as glycogen,
- Re-hydrate and restore electrolytes,
- Repair tissues (muscles, tendons, fascia). The micro-tears can heal and become stronger. This is called adaptation — this is how you improve,
- Reset hormonal and metabolic environment so you can show up fresh next time.
Without that recovery phase, training and playing simply becomes “breaking the body down”, and you’re missing the build-up phase that leads to performance improvement.
Evening Routine Tips
1. Try some contrast therapy, such as a warm bath followed by a cool rinse. The idea is that warm water helps relax muscles, dilate blood vessels, promote circulation.
On the other hand, a cool rinse or shower helps reduce inflammation and encourage recovery. While it may not have a huge measurable effect in low-level sports, it helps subjective recovery and may help the nervous system shift toward parasympathetic (rest) mode.
Practical tip: After your normal evening shower, spend approximately 5-10 min in warm water (or hot shower) then finish with a 30 to 60 s cool/cold rinse. It’s not mandatory but it feels good and it signals your nervous system to switch states.
2. Try some self-myofascial release. Use a foam roller or small massage or therapy ball on your feet, glutes, back, calves, forearms (for racket/handle grip). The idea is to gently “massage” the fascia (connective tissue) and muscles, encourage circulation, reduce tight spots, and promote a parasympathetic (rest/repair) response.
Practical Tip: Gently roll key areas (feet → calves → glutes → back). Don’t overdo it. Aim for short sessions of approximately 5-10 minutes in the evening, and focus on breathing and ease rather than forcing “pain”.
3. Get good sleep. Aim for 7 to 9 hours every day. We may not be aware of it, but our bodies do a lot of recovery work during sleep (repair, hormonal reset, tissue adaptation). If you had intense workouts, try to get good quality sleep. Evidence shows poor sleep reduces training adaptation, increases injury risk and slows muscle repair.
Practical Tip: Turn off screens an hour before bed, and keep room cool/dark (around 18-20 °C). Avoid caffeine in late afternoon, and also large meals before bedtime. Also, keep in mind that alcoholic can disrupt sleep, even with the initial drowsiness. One handy extra tip: place your legs up the wall for five minutes before bed (see this checklist) to help venous return and calm down.
Next Day Routine
1. Active recovery: Light walking, cycling or yoga
Instead of full rest, the next day you want gentle movement that increases blood flow without stressing the tissues. Research has shown that this helps to flush out of residual waste, improve circulation, keeps you loose and ready for next load.
Example: 20-30 minutes of easy cycling, a 30-minute walk with your dog, or a gentle yoga flow focusing on mobility, breathing and stretching. Keep heart rate low, you should feel like you could do more.
2. Mobility flow: For connective tissue hydration
After competitive play/intense workouts or games, your body has gone through many direction changes, twists, and accelerations. Mobility drills that incorporate hips, shoulders, spine, and foot/ankle complex help maintain range and prevent stiffness. The idea of “connective tissue hydration” means you encourage movement through full ranges so fascia and connective tissues stay well-lubricated, “hydrated”, and resilient.
Practical Tip: 10-15 minutes of mobility flow, such as hip circles, shoulder reach and rotate, ankle rolls, light lunges with twist, thoracic spine openers.
Your workout doesn’t end when you leave the gym. It continues with active recovery, so that you feel recharged and ready for the next challenge. Make recovery your secret weapon and watch how much stronger, faster, and more energized you feel every time you workout or play any team sports. Pickleball is particularly intense, and as of late, many people’s favourite, so if that’s you, make sure to give your body a chance to recover well after each game.
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