Recovery Routine

After my long and/or strenuous runs, I have a routine that seems to work pretty well for me.

Cooldown - I don't always include a true cooldown as part of my "recorded" run, but I do always include 5-15 minutes of walking at the end. This is usually as easy as just ending my run a half to full mile from home or the finish line. My HR usually gets down to between 100-120 at the end of this cooldown.

Nourishment - Sports drinks are great, but they're expensive, not always around, and loaded with sugar (i.e. empty calories). I've found that some watered-down OJ works well for me. I always have it in the fridge, it's nutritious, and loaded with the stuff my body needs after running (potassium, vitamins, good carbs, etc). I usually take a multi-vitamin along with it to help replace all those vitamins/minerals that my body flushed out in the run.

Anti-inflammatories - With the OJ and multi-vitamin above, I usually pop 2 Ibuprofen in too.

Stretching - I wish I could say I do this *every* time, but in truth, unlike the above, I only stretch when I have time and/or the inclination.

I experimented this past weekend with an "ice bath" after my long LT run and that was quite the experience. I figured as much heat as my body was producing after running that I'd be able to handle the cold water just fine but it was really really uncomfortable there for awhile. Basically, I just got in our big tub and laid down and started the cold water. Once it filled up, I had my wife dump in the whole ice-maker tray in over me. She said I scream like our baby. :-) It was chilly enough that I was wearing a sweatshirt and a big towel over my head. I stayed in for 10 minutes and got out, walked around a bit to let my legs acclimate, then took a hot shower (probably not a good idea).