ACTIVE RECOVERY
Rugby is a tough sport. In my opinion, one of the toughest. Running around smashing into each other is fun, but it takes a big toll on the body.
So, by nature, rugby players are tough, and usually have an all or nothing approach to things. When you play or train for rugby, you work hard. And when you aren’t training or playing, you do nothing. The problem with this approach is that when you are sore from your last game or training session you have two options: grit your teeth and go hard again, or do nothing. Neither of which is a very positive choice in terms of your development.
To get the best out of your training and your body, you need to combine quality work with quality recovery.
When I was playing youth rugby, my attitude towards improvement was to play and train as much and as hard as possible. I thought I could ‘walk off’ knocks and ‘push through’ pain. While no one could have questioned my commitment, this attitude actually held back my development, contributed to injury, and meant I wasn’t 100% come match day.
If I had been smarter, I would have factored ‘active recovery’ into my week.
It’s all very well wanting to give 110% at every opportunity, going ‘all out’ every time you lace up your boots, but it’s only a matter of time before your body starts to break down, or your motivation starts to waiver. The fact is, your body doesn’t get stronger or fitter during a match or training session. Your body improves and adapts to stress on ‘recovery’ days, when you are recovering from the high intensity activity of rugby. So, the better and faster you recover, the better and faster your body adapts, and the sooner you can get back to playing your best rugby. That means better quality training sessions and matches, and faster improvements in your game. Recovery, then, could be the difference between winning and losing, between reaching and falling short of your rugby goals!
There is a big difference between the kind of rest that is sitting on the sofa doing nothing at all – and active rest. It’s called ‘active’ because you are making a conscious effort to aid your body in recovering. Active rest includes both passive recovery (getting a massage, or having an ice bath) and active recovery. These are important elements of your training and development, because if you don’t give your body time to recover, it won’t improve.
Active recovery aims to increase circulation, pumping nutrient-rich blood (from your good nutritious diet) to your muscles, and removing lactic acid and other waste products, all of which accelerate the recovery process. There is no need to stress the joints and muscles during active recovery – just work them enough to activate the body and elongate the muscles.
Recovery is also important mentally. If you are playing and training hard most days, you are going to burn out. If you know there are ‘rugby free’ or rest days factored into your week, you will be inspired to work harder and be more focused during the training or match days.
Post match or training
As soon as you finish a hard training session or game, the recovery process starts. You can help yourself recover by completing a cool down, something too often forgotten, especially after a match. It only takes 10 minutes, and it’s well worth it.
A light jog around the pitch and a good full body stretch is an effective cool down. Light jogging gradually lowers the intensity of activity and so minimises the stress on the different systems of the body. Stretching following exercise helps to reduce the risk of injury during the next session, gently restoring length and elasticity to the muscles. Although if you have picked up a knock such as a dead leg, don’t stretch that muscle; instead, apply ‘RICE’ (rest, ice, compression, elevation).
After your cool down, hopefully you will be thinking about showering! Unfortunately, cold showers are more effective in the recovery process than warm showers, just nowhere near as pleasant. As you get older and your rugby becomes more competitive, you may be lucky enough to experience an ice bath, which will make a cold shower seem like a treat! The concept is the same though: it will flush waste products from the muscles and, once you warm up again, increase nutrient-rich blood flow back to the muscles.
Refuelling
During the intense activity of playing rugby, your body loses water and uses energy. Replacing this lost fluid and used energy is a vital part of recovering. For up to 30 minutes after you finish, your body is more receptive to replacing that lost energy, so view that half an hour as your ‘window of opportunity’ to refuel. Ideally, eat carbohydrate that the body can easily absorb. A banana is a great choice, or even a chicken salad sandwich, which will help the body repair as well as refuel.
Hydration
Staying hydrated is absolutely key if you want to recover well and perform at your best. You can lose a lot of fluids during exercise, so stay on top of it! Our first summer camp was during extremely hot weather, so staying hydrated became a priority.
We would weigh in before and after each session, making sure that we were drinking enough throughout the day to maintain body weight. This is a good habit to get into on match days; weigh yourself after breakfast, and again in the changing room after the game. Make sure you have replaced lost fluids by checking that you weigh the same (or more) than before the game.
Staying on top of dehydration is best approached as an ongoing challenge, not just on match days. Drink plenty of water throughout the day, every day. A good indicator of hydration is the colour of your urine – the paler the better!
Active recovery sessions
Performing an active recovery session the day after a tough training session or match is a fantastic habit to get into. Included in your portfolio is an illustrated active recovery session. Performing these stretches and exercises will help the body maintain mobility and mean you are less likely to pick up injuries.
Sleep
You have probably heard that you should get around 8 hours sleep a night. Your body does most of its growing, repairing and developing during sleep. For growing lads who are playing and training hard, quality sleep becomes even more important.
A small amount of planning and discipline goes a long way here; start your night routine early, stay away from your computer, TV or Xbox for at least an hour before getting into bed. If possible, lower the lights. Don’t listen to loud, heavy music. If you have a game the next day, close your eyes and visualise how well you are going to play: good tackles, perfect passes, line breaks etc. This will put you in a positive, relaxed state of mind, and keep the pre match jitters at bay.
Swim
If you are lucky enough to have access to a swimming pool, use it! Pool work is fantastic for active recovery. A gentle swim, or any whole body movements in the pool (high knees, walking, underwater claps) puts next to no stress on the ligaments and joints and flushes out the muscles, helping with recovery.
Sample pool recovery session:
Swim a length, high knees a length, quad stretch
Swim a length, heel kicks, hamstring stretch
Swim a length, alternating side steps, adductor stretch (inside leg stretch)
Repeat 3 times
Foam rolling or ‘self myofascial release’ is another great recovery tool. You need a foam roller for this; in my opinion it is worth the investment. If you are interested in adding foam rolling to your active recovery routine, please get in touch.