“Recovery is as important as the time you put in the gym!”
In my previous post, I talked about how taking advantage of the benefits of EPOC, or Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption, is an extremely beneficial tool to utilize throughout your fitness journey. The type of exercise that allows you to experience EPOC is known as HIIT, or High-intensity Interval Training. This type of training is just that – INTENSE! Although the bouts of high intensity can be brief, it can be highly taxing on the body and demands a thorough recovery of your muscles and other soft tissue.
This is an often-neglected, under-emphasized part of any fitness regimen that cannot afford to just be an afterthought. After all, the damage caused to our muscle tissues while exercising at the gym do not translate into muscle gains in size and strength if we do not rest. In a similar way, it is imperative that we spend the time after exercise to give our muscles and other soft tissue their best chance to recover fully, and more quickly.
So what do I need to do to recover faster?
There are several strategies we can employ to recover faster, one of which is to use a foam roller. Using foam rollers to recover has been a commonly-used practice for several years now, but it seems the importance is still not emphasized enough. Otherwise known as SMR or Self Myofascial Release, it is the practice of using specific tools to encourage blood flow and promote alleviation of adhesions in soft tissue.
I can speak to you about the benefits of SMR and how it has helped me recover faster from my workouts, but on this post I am going to share with you an article that provides a comprehensive look at the benefits, as well as video specifically on how to effectively foam roll!
But wait! (Using my best infomercial voice..lol I love those commercials!)
If you know my story and my path into the fitness industry, and how I transformed my physique even with the time constraints of working full-time in banking, I followed a program known as HIIT-MAX, which utilized the principles of EPOC to maximize calorie-burning results, whilst being time-efficient as well. I could get through a workout in less than a half an hour!
Because of my decision to change my training style in the gym to achieve my particular goal of getting lean enough to have a six-pack, I discovered just how effective and efficient it was for me. Of course, spending time in the gym wasn’t my only challenge; being diligent with my meal preparation was too. Having a customized plan was what ultimately got me the results I wanted.
“As they say: Fail to plan, and you therefore plan to fail.”
Nevertheless, although I achieved the results I wanted, had I taken only a little more time to recover properly, I likely would have achieved even better results as I would have been able to hit the gym sooner, and harder.
Alright, here you go guys! Have a watch of the two videos in the article, which show both how to effectively foam roll before and after a workout, but also what a full HIIT-MAX workout is like and just how awesome it is!
Yours in fitness,
Kevin
fituntd.com 