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Ironman Recovery
Clearly there are a
lot of opinions
about how to recover
from an Ironman, and
clearly there are
multiple highly
successful means of
recovering from
ultra distance
events like Ironmans.
I am going to
discuss a method I
have been using with
athletes that has
proved to diminish
recovery time and
soreness while also
promoting recovery
and reducing
injuries. Certainly
the last thing that
an athlete wants to
do after an Ironman
is workout so the
classic or most
popular means of
recovery seems to be
to immediately stop
all exercise. Today
I am going to
support a less
intuitive means of
encouraging
recovery. After a
long event like
Ironman the body is
riddled with micro
and macro muscle
tears, loaded with
lactic acid and
systemically
exhausted. I propose
that athletes stay
active until they
start to “have legs”
and then take their
downtime. By doing
passive exercises
like spinning or
swimming we can
assist the body in
its attempt to
recover by promoting
blood flow and
stretching. This may
also help lymph
nodes clear lymph
and assist the
immune system and
systemic energy. I
firmly believe that
athletes need a day
off of running for
every mile they
raced, but 4-5 days
of swimming and
spinning has proven
to bring my athletes
back from the dead
and promote healing
and recovery. The
following is a
sample protocol of
what I might have an
athlete do post
Ironman.
Night of Race: 30
minute stretch
followed by a 20
minute ice bath and
400 mg of Ibuprofen.
1 Day out of race:
a.m. stretch, light
breakfast , followed
by easy 20 min swim
with others. 10
minute stretch, eat
again and then an
easy 30 min spin
which will probably
hurt a lot.
2 days out: 30 min
easy spin
3 days out-: 20 min
easy swim
4 days out: 30 min
easy bike ride and
20 min easy swim
All of these days
should also include
at least 30 minutes
of stretching, a
diet rich in protein
with a daily
emphasis on
hydration and rest.
Lastly, an ice bath
is very helpful in
promoting muscle
healing. The 5 days
following these
active recovery
sessions would
likely be totally
off. |
