There’s nothing better than spending a fair amount of time in the gym and really pushing yourself. However, it’s important to remember that what you do in the gym isn’t the only thing that’s important. What you do before and after are also equally important! In this post, we’re going to focus on the after-gym process. There are some things that you should always avoid, for various reasons, though they all have your best interests at heart! Take a read, and make any changes to your post-gym routine if necessary.
Straight In the Car
You might have pushed yourself to the limit, but it’s not time to get into the car just yet. You’ll help your body recover much better if you spend some time cooling down. The last thing you might want to do after working out is staying in the gym a little longer, but it is important. It’s not just so you don’t feel pain later on in the day, either — working out can cause dizziness and other issues, which are obviously problematic if you’re trying to operate a vehicle. The warm down will take you back to normal rest mode.
Treat Yourself
You’ve put in a good shift at the gym, so what better way to celebrate than by treating yourself? If you’ve achieved something, then surely there should be a reward. While this may be the case, the reward should come in the form of sugary snacks or alcohol. The reward will come later, when you have a trim and energetic body. Part of the satisfaction of going to the gym is that you experience deferred-gratification, rather than instant-gratification. The rewards will come in due time! Put down the donut and wait for the benefits to come. If you’re pushing yourself, they will!
Beauty Products
You will hopefully have worked out hard enough that you’re covered in sweat. This shows that you’ve been pushing yourself to the limit, but, alas, it’ll also result in a body that’s a little less than hygienic. There is a right way and wrong way to get your body back into presentable shape after a workout. A splash of water on the face is not acceptable; a gentle cleanser and moisturizer are much better. You should also avoid using talcum powder since there has been compensation for talcum powder injuries handed out in recent years. Also, don’t sit around in your gym clothes — they’ll be covered in bacteria.
Spend the Day Sitting Down
People seem to think that if you go to the gym, then you can do whatever you want. However, this is not the case — the gym should just be one part of an active and healthy lifestyle. If you went to the gym for a few hours a week, but then stayed sitting down for the rest of the week, then you couldn’t have too many complaints if you didn’t make the progress that you wanted. Walk, cycle around town, and ensure that you have an all-around active lifestyle.
Martin Knox
Friday 6th of March 2020
Thanks for your post 'What not to do after a workout.' My interest is as a fiction writer prescribing radical training for a runner attempting a record-breaking performance. My novel will be called Running Out Of Time and could be published later this year. Mine is not an empirically derived regimen and relies on routines having logical and intuitive appeal, which seems to be your epistemology too. I regard the content of training to be only half the experience. The other half is the routine employment of personal will, which strengthens it for competition, like keeping your car battery charged up by frequent use. Do you agree that a runner who faithfully follows a demanding training programme should have the tenacity and discipline to tolerate applying greater effort, which would improve their performance? Thank you for interest. I look forward to your further information.