Have you been giving yourself a tough time during training or not training at all? Too much or too little physical activity can damage the muscles that support movement and balance. It’s common to experience muscle aches, low energy levels, and slight soreness after a rigorous sports or high-intensity workout. However, if you’ve noticed a visible reduction in your overall muscle tone or you find it challenging to perform high-intensity exercises, you may have muscle loss and recovery issues.
Both muscle loss and slow recovery can seriously hamper your ability to achieve your fitness goals and stay motivated during workouts. An unhealthy lifestyle and poor nutrition are the most obvious things to blame.
Thankfully, some simple lifestyle changes can help you increase lean muscle mass and improve recovery. Let’s dig into some proven and practical tips that help your muscles recover faster and grow stronger.
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Use Safe Peptides
Food is your primary source of nutrients for muscle growth. However, fitness enthusiasts such as athletes and gym trainers may require diet supplements and peptides to support natural muscle growth and increase their stamina.
Many athletes and fitness trainers recommend using safe pentapeptides like Ipamorelin that stimulate the release of growth hormones and promote lean muscle mass development.
Besides its miraculous ability to improve muscle growth, Ipamorelin presents added health benefits for adults, and the biggest one of them is preventing muscle wastage, loss, and weakness. It also helps you maintain young and vibrant skin and assists in your weight-loss journey.
If you’re wondering where to buy Ipamorelin, there are plenty of options online that you can explore. However, we recommend consulting with your doctor, physician, and dietician before using them.
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Be Sure to Warm Up and Cool Down Before and After Each Workout
Many athletes and fitness trainers already know the importance of warming up and cooling down for a training session. However, if you’re new to the fitness game, you may want to level up your exercise intensity all too soon in pursuit of a lean shape or a perfect BMI. But the truth is that engaging in rigorous workouts without warming up can severely damage your muscles, and excessive physical activity can lead to muscle waste, cramps, and weakness.
Similarly, abruptly terminating high-intensity workouts results in disproportionate circulation and buildup of metabolic waste inside your body, which leads to muscle loss. Instead of gaining muscle mass or losing those extra pounds, you end up losing muscles and gaining weight. What a nightmare!
However, warmup and cool-down techniques do exactly the opposite. The purpose of warmup exercises is to slowly increase your breathing rate and pulse so your body can adjust to the increased blood flow and balance the supply and demand of oxygen and required nutrients. Warmup includes low-intensity workouts like stretching, jumping jacks, cardio, squats, lunges, and leg swings and should be done from five to ten minutes before you increase exercise intensity.
Cooling down your body is equally important, as it helps to stretch and relax your muscles and boost your recovery process. Your body slowly comes down to a relaxing stage, which reduces muscle soreness and improves your range of motion.
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Maintain an Optimum Hydration Level
You may be wondering, how is drinking water related to recovery and muscle growth? But the fact of the matter is that water is the main catalyst in boosting muscle growth. The nutrients and oxygen molecules require a medium to flow to every muscle cell. Water not only encourages a smooth flow of these nutrients but also maintains your muscles’ flexibility during exercise and recovery. Moreover, water is the core element that ensures adequate lubrication of joints. This is why when your joints crackle during winter, your physician recommends drinking the required amount of water. If you fail to drink enough water before your workout, it can weaken both your muscles and supporting bones.
Water also plays a major role in post-workout recovery and muscle repair. It helps you remove toxins from your body faster and keep your muscles flexible, which ultimately translates into faster recovery times and reduced risk of soreness and fatigue. Aim to drink at least three to four liters of water throughout the day if you have a tough exercise routine.
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Good Nutrition Means Stronger Muscles
Food is like fuel to the body, but eating the right food is just as necessary. It’s an open secret that muscle growth requires just the right amount of nutrients to stimulate growth hormones and create more muscle cells.
Protein creates protein, it’s true! However, eating too much protein compared to other macronutrients can start a process we call gluconeogenesis. This process essentially converts amino acids into glucose, which has technically no effect on muscle growth and even recovery. In fact, excessive meat intake can lead to dehydration.
As a rule of thumb, you should increase your protein intake but balance it with other macronutrients like carbs and fats. Ideally, proteins should constitute 25-35% of your daily macros, while carbs and fats should make up 40-60% and 15-20%. Consume healthy proteins like boiled eggs, nut butter, and protein shakes 3-4 hours before workouts.
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Sleep Well
A good night’s sleep not only helps you recover from muscle damage but also boosts muscle growth. Your body gets enough time to recover from a rigorous exercise and reduce strain on muscles. People who perform high-intensity workouts may require longer sleep hours than those who stay sedentary. Try to get at least 7-9 hours of uninterrupted sleep.
Final Thoughts
Muscle growth and improved recovery times are two essential components for all fitness enthusiasts and athletes. The above lifestyle changes will serve as building blocks for a stronger and leaner body and increased endurance. Remember to consult with a professional fitness expert or registered dietician before adopting any of the above lifestyle changes. They will help you develop a safe and effective diet plan as well as workout routines to reach your fitness goals faster.