Hello friends! Vitaly Okhrimenko is on the line. Remember I wrote about warming up before training in the gym? So, every workout should begin with a warm-up. How should it end? - you ask. That's right, it should end with a hitch.
After all, the cool-down after training, which we will talk about today, is the missing puzzle that will help us swing correctly and get the most out of our workout. And at the same time it will help get rid of this unpleasant muscle pain the next day after training. Well, okay, I won’t get ahead of myself, let’s talk about everything in order.
Why do you need a cool down?
The vast majority of us (gym goers) never cool down after a workout. Apparently we consider this a waste of time: why bother, the main work has already been done. But no, dear blog readers and fans of the hall. Here we are deeply mistaken: a cool-down should be as integral a part of training as a shower after training
. Now I will explain why this is so, and below I will describe the cool-down exercises.
Any workout in the gym is accompanied by the following characteristics: body temperature increases, heart rate increases, blood is filled with oxygen and is more concentrated in the muscles being trained. In fact, it is always stressful for our body, even moreover, we must try to ensure that every workout with weights is stressful for the body. I wrote about this in detail in the article on how to build a workout in the gym.
This is all good and correct, but all this has one side effect: the blood remains in the trained muscles and stagnates. The body is not able to quickly adapt from a critical pace of life to a normal one. This can be compared to the fact that we will run at fast speed and then suddenly stop. What will happen? By inertia, our body will fly forward, the body will remain in a state of fast speed for some time with all that it implies.
A sharp transition from the “active” state to the “calm” state has a bad effect on our health!
As a result, we get an inadequately high load on the heart, and other organs do not receive the required amount of blood after training for a long time. This is where we need a hitch. This is kind of like a signal to our body: “STOP! That’s it, there will be no more harshness, you can relax.” The central nervous system (CNS) apparatus responds perfectly to this signal.
However, we have looked at the benefits of a cool-down for our health. But there are also benefits to the muscles of a cool-down.
The cool-down must include stretching of the muscles being trained (stretching). This allows us to return the muscles to their original length. Damn, I wanted to keep it short, but apparently it won’t work.
The benefits of cool-downs for muscles
During exercise, our muscles contract. To increase in volume, muscles have to sacrifice their length (very, very simplified).
As you know, muscle growth begins only after the muscle is restored. It turns out that before our body returns the muscle to its former length, the process of muscle growth will not begin.
.
What will happen if we train muscles faster than they have time to restore length? That's right, the muscles will remain in a contracted form. To begin with, this will cause unusual inconvenience to our musculoskeletal system, because the joints are designed for one length of muscle fibers, and we will voluntarily reduce this length with training without a hitch and stretching. As a result, we become less mobile (like koalas in a fleshy shell) and create additional stress on our joints. Which, by the way, training with weights doesn’t bring anything good anyway. This can be compared to wearing a suit a couple sizes smaller.
It’s a completely different matter when our muscles undergo a systematic cool-down after training with stretching elements. Muscles recover much faster and therefore begin to grow earlier . The flexibility of both muscle tissue and joint joints increases. We can do the exercise with a greater amplitude, which means we can load the muscles better, and as a result, get a better athletic result. In addition, thanks to the cool-down, blood circulation improves , the trained muscles receive more oxygen through the blood, and this, of course, has a positive effect on muscle growth. Normalization of blood supply supplies our muscles with an increased amount of nutrients .
In addition to all the above advantages, it should be noted that due to the fact that the muscle becomes longer, its growth potential certainly increases. After all, there is more room for growth! I wrote about all this in more detail here.
Well, to all of the above, you should also add the removal of lactic acid from the muscles through a cool-down. This very acid makes our muscles ache the day after training. After all, you and I are familiar with these sensations: muscle aches, decreased joint mobility. It feels like the muscle is simply being squeezed from the inside, and any hint of stretching brings not the most pleasant feelings. I assure you, if you systematically do a cool-down after training, you will soon forget about this trouble.
From the entire text above, I propose to summarize the goals for which we need to do a cool-down after training in the gym.
Simple warm-up exercises
Let's look at 5 simple warm-up exercises that will help warm up your body before training:
Stretch the neck muscles to the sides
Technique for performing the exercise: Stretching the neck muscles to the sides
Place one hand on the top of your head and extend the other along your body. Tilt your head to the side and make a slight effort with your hand on the top of your head. Don't pull your shoulders up. Hold the tilt at the maximum point for a few seconds. Repeat with an incline to the other side.
Delt stretching
Technique for performing the exercise: Stretching the deltas
Stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart. Extend your arm in front of you and clasp your forearm at the elbow. Press your hand to your body and hold for a few seconds at the extreme point. Do the exercise for both hands.
Standing triceps stretch
Technique for performing the exercise: Standing triceps stretch
Stand up straight, bend one arm at the elbow and place it behind your head. With your other hand, grab the elbow of your bent arm and apply a little pressure. Do not make sudden movements; there should be a feeling of slight stretching. Stay at the extreme point for 10-20 seconds. Switch hands.
Dynamic stretching of the back muscles
Technique for performing the exercise Dynamic stretching of the back muscles
Stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart. Swing both arms at the same time in front of you. Increase the amplitude each time until your arms rise above your head. Repeat 10 times. Do not jerk at the extreme point.
Swing your leg forward and backward
Technique for performing the exercise: Swing your leg forward and backward
Stand next to a support, a chair or a wall will do, hold on to it with your hand. Swing one arm forward, keeping your leg straight, then swing back. Raising your leg, your back remains straight. Return to the starting position. Do 10-20 swings with each leg.
This set of exercises will not take much time and will perfectly prepare the body for training. These 5 exercises can be included after your workout.
What is a cool down
Perhaps I’m wrong and this is where I should have started today’s article. However, I decided to start with the benefits of a hitch, for which you have the right to judge me)). So, having figured out why we need a cool-down after strength training, it’s time to understand what a cool-down actually is.
A cool-down is an exercise performed at the end of a workout at a slow and easy pace, which allows the body to move from an excited state to a calm or close to calm state (source bodykeeper.ru).
The cool-down primarily includes stretching and cardio exercises. Stretching restores muscles to their former length and elasticity, and at the same time reduces the recovery process. Cardio exercise prepares our nervous system and our muscles for rest.
Warm up and cool down. Exercises in the app
The training course in the application follows a familiar and well-developed scheme. On the main screen, all exercises are collected into two complexes:
- Warm Up (set of exercises for warming up)
- Cool down (cool down after exercise)
You set the time during which you will perform the activities. Based on this time, the application will put together a set of exercises for you. In preview mode, you can see what the mobile program has prepared for you, and also put all the exercises in random order.
The training takes place in the format of visual lessons. The model in the video shows the technique, and the voice instructor gives commands to get ready, start, change sides and finish.
Once you've completed the exercises, your workout is marked on the calendar. So you can see on what day and for how many minutes you worked out and how many calories you burned.
All exercises for warming up before training and cooling down after it are collected in a separate list. Here, each exercise is provided with a visual video card.
If you purchased the premium version for 119 rubles, you are given access to individual training. You set the duration of the workout, the frequency and duration of rest, and make yourself a list of exercises.
How to properly cool down after a workout
The first 5 minutes of the cool-down should be devoted to cardio. For example, running or riding an exercise bike. And there is a trick here:
Cardio cool-down should start at a faster pace and end at a slower pace.
We start, for example, by running at a moderate pace and within 5 minutes we move from a leisurely run to a slow walk, after which we begin stretching. The purpose of sedative cardio is to normalize heart contractions, bringing the pulse to a state close to resting. This trick indicates to the nervous system mentioned above that we will no longer abuse the body and we can finally relax
.
After the calming cardio, you need to do some stretching exercises. Moreover, you only need to stretch those muscles that were trained. As an example, follow the link above and see which exercises for which muscles. Performing each exercise once for 30 to 60 seconds each workout is more than enough for a good stretch during the cool-down.
As a rule, several muscle groups are worked out during training. Each one needs to be stretched accordingly.
On average, during 1 workout, 5 stretching exercises are done as a cool-down, which takes an average of 5 minutes. Stretching is done carefully; there should be no pain. Light static stretches without jerking or rocking. This is written in detail in the article on how to stretch and why jocks should stretch.
In general, you should not spend more than 10 minutes on a cool down. The purpose of a cool-down is to calm the body, and not completely exhaust it.
Warm-up: important steps
Cardio warm-up
You can jump rope, jog outside, or spend 5-10 minutes on an elliptical or exercise bike. This will prepare your lungs and heart for productive work, ensure a sufficient flow of oxygen into the blood, as well as blood flow to the muscles.
Joint warm-up
Prepare your joints for stress, increase their mobility and endurance. Joint warm-up begins with the neck. This can be circular movements of the head, turning the head to the sides, tilting the head to stretch the neck muscles. Then rotate your arms, bend to the sides, stretch your pelvis, legs and, of course, your feet.
Muscle stretching
Stretch each muscle group for about 10 seconds. Pay attention to your arms, leg muscles - calves, front and back of the thigh.
After an effective warm-up, you will feel your pulse increase and your breathing quicken, your body temperature rise, and a blush appear on your face. This means that your body is completely ready for the load and, believe me, your workout will be the most effective.
Cool-down exercises
Well, now we get to the most interesting part. As I wrote above, we conditionally divide the cool-down into two stages.
Cardio cool-down
At this stage, you need to choose any cardio exercise and do it according to the principle from faster to slower. Our task, as I wrote above, is to normalize the pulse. By the end of an intense workout, our heart rate usually approaches twice or even more than our resting heart rate. Cardio cool-down allows us to smoothly reduce the rhythm of the heartbeat, which will not cause stress to the body.
Perfect for cardio warm-up:
- Jogging, turning into slow walking.
- Exercise bike, elliptical trainer, orbit track.
- Jumping rope with a decrease in tempo.
- Sparring with a punching bag - from fast to slow.
Bodymaster.ru recommends Fitness Trainers:
We also recommend setting up notifications for yourself so that you don’t forget to complete the appropriate exercises.
The application does not contain any detailed and visual reporting; there are no graphs or tables of your workouts. The maximum you can personalize is height and weight data.
However, complex reporting is not particularly needed here. Warm-up and cool-down application. The exercises are purely practical in nature so that your workout brings the most beneficial results.
