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5 Recovery Methods To Be A GREAT Athlete

Want to know the secret to be a GREAT athlete. It's not some secret training method. It's not some special mental hack. It's something you already do.

5 Recovery Methods To Be A GREAT Athlete

Want to know the secret to be a GREAT athlete.

It's not some secret training method.

It's not some special mental hack.

It's something you already do.

But you don't realize how important it is.

What I'm talking about is rest and recovery.

Rest and recovery is essential in any field.

Whether it be becoming a great athlete, scientist, or business person.

If you are unable to rest and recover.

Give your brain and body time to get back to baseline.

And make new neural connections to help you on your path.

You won't make it.

Why Do You Need Rest?

Rest is when growth happens.

If I've said it once I've said it hundreds of times.

We rest when we recover.

Meaning that going to the gym all day or working on your business all day hurts you more than it helps you.

You see when you give your body time to rest and recover you put money in the bank.

During something as simple as sleep:

  • Your CNS, muscles and tendons will repair

  • Your brain forms new neural pathways

  • You reenergize your body

  • You form new ideas

Bottomline.

If you aren't resting you aren't growing.

And if you aren't growing you’re dying.

Let's get you living more.

How Do You Rest & Recover?

1. Sleep

Like I noted above sleep is the #1 thing you can do to recover.

If you want to grow physically sleep is NECESSARY.

It rebuilds and grows muscles, tendons, ligaments, joints, your CNS, and your BRAIN.

While sleeping you live through scenarios that you may see in real life.

Meaning you get to experience the act before it happens, giving you an advantage.

On top of that sleep is the ultimate reset.

Think of each day as a new episode and sleep is what makes everything go back to normal.

It gives you a boost of energy that you need, especially for my athletes and entrepreneurs reading this.

If you skip sleep you hurt your future self.

2. Sauna

The sauna is perfect for your mind and body.

It will:

  • Decrease stress

  • Relax your muscles

  • Improve your sleep

  • Lower inflammation

If you are weightlifting or training it's the perfect tool to aid your recovery process.

On top of this, mentally the sauna is like the hyperbolic time chamber.

In the hyperbolic time chamber you can live out 1 year in 1 day.

Meaning time stretches out.

In the sauna, 15 minutes can feel like 30 minutes.

You can do a lot of thinking, planning, and meditating during that time.

With the added pressure of the heat on you, it forces you to FOCUS if you want to get any real thinking done.

If you decide to stretch during this time you can loosen up your body.

If you decide to sauna, use a sauna that is 180° or higher.

Stay in for 15 minutes or more (or until you hallucinate).

Do this 2-3x/week and your mental state will change for the better.

3. Stretching

Stretching is a physical recovery method as much as it's a mental recovery method.

When you stretch you are listening to your body.

You find the spots that are sore and focus on those areas.

Holding a stretch for 60-90 seconds and going DEEEEP into the stretch.

Breathe deep, and push yourself and you will unlock new ROM and reduce your risk of injury.

And when you stretch you decrease stress.

This is cause stretching puts your body in uncomfortable and unfamiliar situations.

When you encounter uncomfortable and unfamiliar situations you can deal with it.

Stretching will make you a more flexible person, and help you adapt to whatever life throws at you.

10-15 minutes/day is all you need.

4. Cold Tub/Exposure/Plunge

This is the sauna's twin brother.

Where the sauna loosens your muscles, a cold tub will tighten your muscles.

When using a cold tub, do it before you train.

If you do it after, you will inhibit muscle growth, endurance, and strength gains from your workouts.

A cold tub is great for your mind since it induces stress.

It forces you to fight the urge to leave the tub and go to somewhere warm.

When you can endure extreme elements you can endure any environment.

Whether it be in the outside world, in a job, business, or family setting.

A good protocol to use is 3-5 minutes/session, before a training session.

You can do this 3-4x/week.

I use this before my heavy practice days since it tightens my muscles and makes me more springy.

5. Reduce Stress

And the last best way to recover is to reduce stress.

Reducing stress has the best reward for your health.

Reduced stress will help you feel calm, make it easier to put on muscle, and make it easier to respond to challenges.

When you don't feel overwhelmed you realize that most of the things you worry about aren't that serious.

All the methods I have mentioned above will reduce stress.

But some more you can try out are:

  • Journal

  • Meditate

  • Mindfulness

Keep a journal on hand and take notes whenever you feel bad or want to record important thoughts.

Meditate at least 1x/day, focus on your breathe, get into your body, and then visualize your goals.

And practice mindfulness by avoiding your phone while walking, cooking, cleaning, or pooping.

You achieve mindfulness when you do one thing at a time and live in the present moment.

And being present makes you aware of your body and habits, and help you pick up on things to improve.

Recap

The secret to become a great athlete is simple.

And these habits take no more than 30-45 minutes extra/day.

You're telling me you can't sacrifice 30-45 minutes to become a better athlete and change the course of you and your family's life?

As if you don’t spend 2+ hrs playing video games, watching Netflix, or beating your meat everyday.

You have 30-45 minutes to spare.

Those that are willing to sacrifice will reap the rewards.

Lowering stress and giving your body and mind time to recover is the best investment you can make.

And it pays dividends in how you perform in a game, in a business meeting, and with those closest to you.

Make sure you take time to recover.

Because if you don't help yourself, you can't help those around you.

It doesn't matter how much of a superhero you think you are.

Rest will make you better.

And you all need rest.

Plugs

If you need help reaching your fitness goals I am taking on clients who want to

  • Shred Fat

  • Build Muscle

  • Gain Athleticism

  • Increase Confidence

  • In 90 days or you don’t pay

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Stay Blessed AND Stay Based.

Souleymane.