Engaging in weight training and strength work is the cornerstone of gaining muscle and getting into shape, but what many people don’t realize is that the other half of the job begins right when you finish your routine. The pharmacist María Casas clarifies that, after finishing a workout, the most important thing is to prepare the body so it recovers as quickly as possible: “The sooner you recover, the faster you will grow.”
To make the most of your effort and achieve better results, the expert explains the five key steps you should follow at the end of your exercises:
1. Plan your post-workout meal
The first fundamental step is to watch over the meal you eat after training. During exercise the body expends a lot of energy, sugars, and proteins, but that doesn’t mean you should stuff yourself as soon as you’re done. In fact, unless you’ve gone more than 12 hours without eating, you have a window of two to three hours to eat calmly without feeling rushed or worried. This time frame matters because, as the expert explains, it opens the so-called anabolic window, a period in which the muscles are especially prepared to absorb nutrients and rebuild.
To get the most out of your post-workout meals, your plate should combine carbohydrates and proteins. Carbohydrates, in a quantity of 0.5 to 1 gram per kilogram of your weight, provide energy and trigger insulin release. Meanwhile, consuming between 20 and 40 grams of protein will give your body the capacity and strength needed to start building muscle and growing.
A roughly 500-calorie plate to achieve this would consist of 100 grams of cooked pasta with 140 grams of grilled chicken breast, accompanied by 200 grams of cherry tomatoes, 100 grams of tomato sauce, and 10 grams of grated Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.
2. Maintain Consistent Hydration
The second step is to care for hydration and replenish the minerals lost through sweat. Experiencing muscle pains or stiffness that are particularly bothersome is not a sign that you trained well; in fact, as the expert warns, “that means you pushed too hard and caused so much damage that your body cannot recover.”
If you lack water or minerals such as sodium, potassium, or magnesium, your body will find it much more difficult to build muscle, making cramps more likely. To prevent this, María Casas proposes a simple routine: drink between 200 and 400 milliliters of water from thirty minutes to an hour before you start, carry a bottle of 500 to 700 milliliters to sip during the session, and drink another 200 to 400 milliliters at the end. Additionally, if the workout has been particularly long, intense, or hot, it’s advisable to add an electrolyte mix to that final drink to restore the body’s mineral balance.
3. Apply Cold and Heat Therapies
The third step is to know how to use cold and heat wisely to aid the muscles without slowing their growth. According to María, added cold should not be applied right after finishing a workout because it slows the natural inflammation that the body needs to build muscle mass; for this reason, the best approach is to reserve it for rest days when you feel a lot of pain. It can be applied with ice packs wrapped in a cloth for 15 to 20 minutes, by submerging in cold water for 10 to 15 minutes, or by performing home contrast showers, where you alternate one to three minutes of cold water with three to five minutes of warm water for several cycles to stimulate circulation.
On the other hand, heat serves to relax the muscles, ease stiffness, and improve blood flow, but it should not be used immediately either. The ideal is to wait four to six hours after your routine so the muscle can recover naturally. Once this time has passed you can apply it with hot packs or gels for 15 to 20 minutes, treat yourself to a 30-minute warm bath, or enter a sauna for about 10 to 20 minutes.
4. Ensure Rest and Manage Recovery Timelines
The fourth step is to ensure good rest and give each muscle the time it needs to recover before retraining. María notes that most muscle growth occurs while we sleep, when the body releases the hormones that help us get stronger; that’s why it is so important to sleep seven to nine hours each night. It’s also important not to stress too much, as stress produces a substance that destroys muscle and blocks the beneficial hormones. Additionally, not all muscles take the same time to recover: the smaller ones, like arms, calves, or the abdomen, need one to two days of rest, while the larger ones, like legs, back, or chest, require two to three days of complete rest before resuming training.
5. Take the Necessary Supplements
The fifth step is to take advantage of certain supplements, which, though they don’t work miracles, do accelerate recovery and help muscles grow faster.
The first is creatine, which refuels the energy of cells and helps repair muscles after effort. The dose is 0.1 grams per kilogram of body weight per day, and the time of ingestion doesn’t matter because its effects accumulate in the body.
The second is phenylcapsaicin, a substance similar to the one that makes chili spicy; it acts as a natural analgesic, reduces swelling, and improves blood flow toward the muscles.
Finally, omega-3 oils help to lower inflammation and prevent the body from wearing down the muscle mass that has been gained; the ideal is to take between one and three grams per day of a product that contains at least 60 % of its main ingredients (EPA and DHA).
