Any advice on better muscle recovery

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twittersbitters
twittersbitters Posts: 35 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have upped my workouts dramatically and just don't feel like my muscles are quite responding optimally. I get enough rest and eat plenty of protein, take multi vitamins and vitamin D. Any advice? Supplements, foods? I can run 3 miles one day then four days later still can barely run 2 miles because my legs are so fatigued.
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  • Ninkyou
    Ninkyou Posts: 6,666 Member
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    Are you taking rest days? Getting enough carbs (sometimes not enough carbs affects my workouts)? Stretching?
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    Dramatic increases in workout intensity can take time for the body to adapt to the increased work load. Otherwise keep up with your rest and food intake. Stay properly hydrated, try some active recovery or just wait out a bit more and see if your body recovers better over time
  • twittersbitters
    twittersbitters Posts: 35 Member
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    Yes, I work out four days a week so there are definitely enough rest days. Not great about stretching. Yes on carbs...sometimes too much. I do pretty intense workouts though and or lengthy.
  • Chenry18
    Chenry18 Posts: 211 Member
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    Do you take a post workout recovery supplement? Once I started I noticed a difference. I also increased carb intake
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    Fatigue or pain?

    Are you warming up and stretching after?

    Are you eating adequate calories?

    Are you anaemic?

  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    twittersbitters wrote: »
    Yes, I work out four days a week so there are definitely enough rest days. Not great about stretching. Yes on carbs...sometimes too much. I do pretty intense workouts though and or lengthy.

    What kind of workouts you only mentioned running
  • twittersbitters
    twittersbitters Posts: 35 Member
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    no, would love to find an after workout supplement????
  • Chenry18
    Chenry18 Posts: 211 Member
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    twittersbitters wrote: »
    no, would love to find an after workout supplement????

    Added you! I can give you some recommendations - what helped me.
  • twittersbitters
    twittersbitters Posts: 35 Member
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    rabbitjb wrote: »
    Fatigue or pain?

    Are you warming up and stretching after?

    Are you eating adequate calories?

    Are you anaemic?

    Fatigue, some aching. Not sure about anemia, going to try to get a full blood panel. I'm getting adequate calories, unfortunately too many because I am starving all the time. Urgh. And gaining instead of losing.
    Stretching is minimal, so I definitely think I need to amp that up. I am on my feet at work a lot too, I'm a hairstylist.

    THANK YOU FOR RESPONSES! So frustrated. Feel like I am working so hard and gaining.
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    twittersbitters wrote: »
    Yes, I work out four days a week so there are definitely enough rest days. Not great about stretching. Yes on carbs...sometimes too much. I do pretty intense workouts though and or lengthy.

    What kind of workouts you only mentioned running

    I do free weights three times a week and alternate an hour to hour and a half of cardio four times a week. This includes title boxing classes, spinning, jogging or just eliptical.
  • twittersbitters
    twittersbitters Posts: 35 Member
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    rybo wrote: »
    Dramatic increases in workout intensity can take time for the body to adapt to the increased work load. Otherwise keep up with your rest and food intake. Stay properly hydrated, try some active recovery or just wait out a bit more and see if your body recovers better over time

    Its been almost two months, when does your body adapt generally speaking?
  • Chenry18
    Chenry18 Posts: 211 Member
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    It won't let me add
  • twittersbitters
    twittersbitters Posts: 35 Member
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    Chenry18 wrote: »
    It won't let me add

    i just accepted your friend request!! try now. :)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    twittersbitters wrote: »
    no, would love to find an after workout supplement????

    Honestly, you shouldn't need any kind of post-workout supplement for running a few miles. If you're having issues with recovery from running a few miles 3 or 4 times per week, it would suggest to me that your overall nutrition and calories are probably lacking somewhere...also getting adequate sleep, etc.
  • JoshuaMcAllister
    JoshuaMcAllister Posts: 500 Member
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    twittersbitters wrote: »
    Yes, I work out four days a week so there are definitely enough rest days. Not great about stretching. Yes on carbs...sometimes too much. I do pretty intense workouts though and or lengthy.

    Stretching is key, especially when training legs or running. It sounds like you are experiencing DOMS, it would explain why its so difficult for you to run several days later. After a run you should always dedicate at least 5 minutes to stretching. I never work legs, be it strength or cardio and leave the gym without using a foam roller for 10 minutes before 10 minutes of stretching. Incorporate this and you'll notice massive difference in your recovery.
  • KathyApplebaum
    KathyApplebaum Posts: 188 Member
    edited February 2016
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    If you are having bad work outs, you aren't recovered yet no matter how many rest days you've taken. And if you keep on working out without enough recovery, you won't adapt.

    And you can need that extra recovery at any spot -- listen to your body. I've been running regularly for just over a year, and two weeks ago I needed to take a couple extra days off. Who knows why? Maybe bad sleep, maybe I was fighting off some virus and didn't know it, but my body told me I needed to by giving me a couple of bad runs. After the extra days off, I set a PR without even trying. It was definitely the right thing to do.

    (FWIW, my routine is similar to yours, except I only do weights two days a week, and have one day of active rest (walking the dogs, etc). You might consider going to a six day schedule and see if that helps....)
  • twittersbitters
    twittersbitters Posts: 35 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    twittersbitters wrote: »
    no, would love to find an after workout supplement????

    Honestly, you shouldn't need any kind of post-workout supplement for running a few miles. If you're having issues with recovery from running a few miles 3 or 4 times per week, it would suggest to me that your overall nutrition and calories are probably lacking somewhere...also getting adequate sleep, etc.

    I appreciate what you are saying in that 2-3 miles isn't much however it is when it is new to someone's body and it is on top of spinning, boxing and weight training. It's all relative. My pace has increased by one minute a mile which to me is substantial. I will certainly check my nutrition. Thanks for your response.

  • belinda_73
    belinda_73 Posts: 149 Member
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    foam roll your quads and hip flexors before you run, makes a huge difference! I also run 3 miles in between weight lifting. if you feel run down and like you just don't have enough oof, get your blood tested. The first time I got tested I was extremely low on D. then a few years later, I wasn't feeling 100% I was tested again, anemia. when I do extreme HIIT classes and can't walk the next day, I take some creatine as a post workout. I like concret at gnc.
  • twittersbitters
    twittersbitters Posts: 35 Member
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    belfle wrote: »
    foam roll your quads and hip flexors before you run, makes a huge difference! I also run 3 miles in between weight lifting. if you feel run down and like you just don't have enough oof, get your blood tested. The first time I got tested I was extremely low on D. then a few years later, I wasn't feeling 100% I was tested again, anemia. when I do extreme HIIT classes and can't walk the next day, I take some creatine as a post workout. I like concret at gnc.

    Thank you. I have started taking a decent dose of vitamin d which I do actually feel has helped minimally. Now I am going to get my blood tested to make sure all is good on that front. Creatine is okay for women? I don't know much about it.
  • twittersbitters
    twittersbitters Posts: 35 Member
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    OH AND will invest in a foam roller STAT!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
    edited February 2016
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    twittersbitters wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    twittersbitters wrote: »
    no, would love to find an after workout supplement????

    Honestly, you shouldn't need any kind of post-workout supplement for running a few miles. If you're having issues with recovery from running a few miles 3 or 4 times per week, it would suggest to me that your overall nutrition and calories are probably lacking somewhere...also getting adequate sleep, etc.

    I appreciate what you are saying in that 2-3 miles isn't much however it is when it is new to someone's body and it is on top of spinning, boxing and weight training. It's all relative. My pace has increased by one minute a mile which to me is substantial. I will certainly check my nutrition. Thanks for your response.

    Then perhaps the issue is too much, too soon...and if you're doing all of that, where's your rest...you didn't mention any of that other exercise in previous posts. If you're doing that much, I'd also suggest that it's highly likely you aren't properly fueling that activity...properly fueling exercise is far more beneficial than post work supplements.

    I have pretty strong opinions on pre and post work supplements in that for the most part I think they're marketing hooey. I train like crazy and the only thing I supplement with is whey powder to help me hit my protein targets...good nutrition in amounts appropriate to your activity really should be all you need outside of gaining some incredibly marginal benefit that an elite athlete might get from supplementation. Just my opinion of course...but I personally wouldn't flush $$$ down the drain for pre and post supplements.

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