In today’s fitness realm, there’s a cornucopia of products out there solely designed to help you recover from your workouts. This abundance of devices, from the simple to the space-age, shows how far science and technology have come in the field. We’re no longer relying on Epsom salt baths to help flush out lactic acid — which, we now know, is not the cause of muscle soreness. Now, we have devices to help us cool down, heat up, pound out muscle knots, refuel our bodies and more. If we’re being honest, it can be a lot to digest, especially if you haven’t given your recovery the respect it deserves.
If you’re one of those athletes that’s still searching for a proper recovery routine — or just now realized that “No Pain, No Gain,” is a myth — don’t fret. We spoke with Anthony Bricker and Gaetano Sanchioli, UPMC Sports Medicine athletic trainers for Pittsburgh Public Schools, to outline some common tactics you can use to boost your recovery sessions post-workout. We also included a few product recommendations on our favorite picks for well-rounded relief, gathered both from researching previous buying guides as well as our personal regimens.
Products in the Guide
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Kaged Kasein Casein Protein
BEST CASEIN PROTEIN POWDER
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Therabody Gen5 Theragun Pro
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Rollga “The Everyday” Foam Roller
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Theraband Resistance Bands
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Hyperice Normatec Go
BEST PORTABLE COMPRESSION THERAPY DEVICE
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Kineon Move+
BEST RED LIGHT THERAPY DEVICE FOR BEGINNERS
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FOCL Premium Full Spectrum CBD + CBN Sleep Gummies
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Slumber Cloud Performance Mattress Pad
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Refueling Relief
A good analogy to use in trying to think about recovery is to imagine your body as a car. Now, we’re not talking about the routine maintenance you need to schedule for your SUV in this instance, but think about this: if you don’t fill up your car with fuel, how much progress are you going to make down the road? Well, that same logic can be applied to your body. You’re not going to get very far with a depleted gas tank, so it can be good practice to “fill up” post-workout, according to Sanchioli.
As soon as you complete a training session, Sanchioli recommends getting some sort of food into your system. “Just something to put some fuel back in the body,” he says. “The body, at that point, is looking for some carbs, looking for some protein. It kind of needs a little bit of both and doesn’t need a lot. It just needs enough to kind of kickstart the engine and get some energy back.”
For this quick hit of protein, a post-workout shake is probably your best bet. There’s plenty of options and flavors to choose from, so be sure to find a powder that matches your palette best. Additionally, if you typically work out in the afternoon or evening hours, you may benefit from supplementing with casein powder over your normal whey protein. Thanks to the slower digestion, this derivative, like Kasein from Kaged Supplements below, can be great for facilitating that post-workout muscle growth long after your head hits the pillow.