When getting your body and mind ready to compete, recovery process is very necessary. Speed is important but if you cannot able to recover quickly you can't able to maintain that speed for long time. Time spent on saddle can beneficial to your cycling performance as that spent riding and getting the best quality recovery between rides is very important. Recovery process is not very old concept, it has came under spotlight recently. Experts and specialists are now focused on discovering optimum means of restoring energy levels, resting muscles, recuperating the mind and returning the athlete to action in prime condition and ready to compete.
Many athletes are mainly focus on there training or on there performance but there are very less people who focus on recovery process. For improvement there is a simple formula; training and recovery. 'Egan Bernal', won the Tour de France 2019 partly because of the incredible recovery process.
So in this article we will discuss about the 5 best recovery process method you should apply to become better in cycling.
1.REFUEL RIGHT:
For a better recovery, it is necessary that your body must have sufficient fuels. Your body must have some fuel to recover properly. The two most important macronutrient for better recovery when you step off the cycle are carbohydrate and protein. Take meal that has high carbohydrate with upto 20g of protein. Rice is considered to be the best food for this as it has a very amount carbohydrate and it can replenish your muscle glycogen level too. White rice, lean chicken breast and some cooked vegetables are very examples as a recovery meal. A recovery drink is a good idea after a race if meal is not possible.
2.REHYDRATION:
When you do cycling your lose water and it is very important to recover that lose. But only plain water isn't enough when it comes to recovery because when you sweat, with water you also lose electrolytes which too you have to recover in order to maintain that body's mineral balance. The main losses will come in form of sodium, so you have to make sure your recovery beverages is high in this.
Aim to sip, rather than pour it down directly to drink. That way , it will be better absorbed by the body.
3.PROPER REST
A proper rest very important process in this method. Never underestimate the effect of sleep. From sleep a bulk of the recovery come from. It's important that you should have a proper sleep. You should have a precise bed time routine with a consistent sleep and wake time. Having a long sleep at weekends is also not good as it would interfere your sleep cycle come Monday morning. Taking small nap is also beneficial. Taking a nap of around 30 minutes could be very beneficial.
4.GET HANDS ON:
Resting, rehydrating and refuelling are the basic recovery techniques. However, when competing in a stage race, further recovery can be necessary. Massage is a common practice among the professional bikers, however its effects are not yet properly understood. There is very little evidence in terms of physiology that it speed up recovery. However rider's says that it make them recover better. And keep thinking that you are faster, may be it will lead you to becoming faster.
5.COLD COMPRESSION:
Compression garment are another good option. Most cyclist have reported less delayed onset muscle soreness the ache that occur after gruelling rides of 24-48 hours.
Ice bath, or cold-water immersion, also has mixed reviews, both anecdotally and in studies. They also aimed at recovery, not adaptation. It's something to only be used in recovery.
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