The Importance of Having a Pre and Post Workout Routine
Achieving peak performance isn’t just about what you put into your workout. The time before your workout and after are equally important, and what you do during those times can dramatically impact your workout performance and what you get out of your efforts. While the workout obviously matters, you can make it more valuable without expending more effort or spending more time in active exercise. It all comes down to how you’re preparing for your workout and how you’re recovering.
What Should Your PreWorkout Routine Look Like?
The first thing we need to do when considering a pre-workout routine is ditch the notion that it happens just minutes before the workout. It’s a lifestyle change that supports a healthy approach to fitness. Making the following changes will dramatically affect your performance and your body’s ability to respond in an essential way.
Prioritize Sleep
Sleep is not only essential for great fitness, but it’s also a key part of living a healthy life. Science has repeatedly shown us that sleep is vital and plays a big role in all aspects of health and well-being. Sleep keeps your brain working properly. It helps your body recharge, and it can help support your immune system. Sleep can help to maintain healthy hormone levels that play a big role in weight management. It almost goes without saying that having appropriate levels of sleep also gives you more energy.
So, how much sleep does science say you should get? The general rule is that adults need seven to eight hours a day. But that’s not a hard and fast rule because each person is different, and each day might be a little different. You can easily go with six hours of sleep and be fine one day, and some people can do that every day. Other people need nine hours of sleep each night to feel completely rested. Let’s just say the goal is seven to eight, but you do you.
Hydration
First of all, hydration is a critical component of a healthy existence, whether you’re an athlete or not. The following are reasons they’re important to everyone, but remember, athletes or anyone participating in strenuous exercise will sweat, and their bodies will require more hydration.
♦ Transporting nutrition
♦ Eliminating waste
♦ Lubricating joints, organs, and other tissues
♦ Temperature maintenance
♦ The first line of defense in your immune system
The negative effects of even minimal dehydration are huge. The importance of maintaining proper hydration cannot be stressed enough. While this needs to be followed by everyone, athletes should be particularly concerned about proper hydration. This all starts before the workout.
Essential elements® Hydration is a great way to ensure you’re getting the right amount of hydration before and throughout your workout. This electrolyte mix helps your body absorb moisture and use it efficiently. It also supports a healthy immune system. We’ve carefully designed this product to deliver the best hydration support possible to keep you fit and healthy while you work out.
If you want to add even more to your workout, try Essential elements® PreWorkout. Powered by beets and apple cider vinegar, it gives you additional endurance, promotes circulation, and loads you up with vitamin C. Using a proprietary blend of naturally-sourced caffeine will also give you a little kickstart before your workout that won’t leave you feeling jittery.
Eat a Snack
Fueling your body with a little burst of protein and nutrients is a good way to bolster your workout and give you extra energy. It can also help your body more efficiently process fluids. What types of snacks should you eat? Anything that won’t fill you up. Skip the pre-workout smoothies because while the nutritional value and fluid aspect are useful, they sit in your stomach, leave you feeling full, and hinder a workout. Instead, opt for a piece of fruit, a grain-rich snack like granola, a fitness bar, or protein-rich foods like a little bit of meat or half of a whole grain sandwich. Just make sure it’s comfortable for you.
Proper Warm-Up
The final step before your workout is the warm-up. Some people roll this right into their workout, which is a great approach. If you’re involved in a fitness class or a group activity, that’s often not a part of a regular fitness routine, so you might want to do a little extra beforehand on your own.
Warm-ups are critical because they rev up your cardiovascular system so you can do more and do it efficiently. They can also help stretch muscles, which can help reduce the risk of issues and soreness.
What Should Your Post-Workout Routine Look Like?
Of course, it’s not just about the pre-workout; there’s the post-workout to consider too. Let’s look at how to structure a healthy post-workout routine and what needs to be included.
Stretching and Cool-Down
It’s almost like going in reverse order – after your workout, you want to cool down the body and do a little stretching. This gives your heart a chance to slowly recover and gently reduces your blood pressure. Endurance athletes will find this step to be of vital importance to their body and their circulatory system. Other athletes will benefit from the cool down as a way to reduce any risks, slowly reset the heart, and begin feeling refreshed again. It’s almost as important as the warm-up, so it shouldn’t be skipped.
Refuel and Rehydrate With Proper Nutrition
Just like before your workout, getting moisture back into your body is a top priority. In fact, it might even be more important after the workout than before. Prioritize this as you consider how you’re going to refuel because you can effectively incorporate hydration and protein into one plan. If you want to have a proper snack or meal after working out, stick to fresh fruits and vegetables packed with nutrition or try chocolate milk. Milk is loaded with protein, and the sugars can help your body recover faster.
Want to take that recovery a step further? Try using Essential elements® Protein mix in a smoothie or in water to ensure you’re getting the right amount of protein without unnecessary calories. You can also count on acacia prebiotics for healthy gut support and proper absorption of our plant-based protein mix.
Another great way to support your post-workout recovery is through Essential elements® Hydration. The very same tasty mix you use to load up on fluids before your workout can be what you turn to afterward for recovery. This is super-handy because you can mix up a couple of batches and take them with you to the gym or bring them along in your gear bag so they’re ready and waiting for you.
Write Down Your Workout
Writing down your performance or tracking it in some method is obviously not essential, but many people find it helps them stay motivated and on track. Having a goal and a list of your best times can be inspiring. It can also be exactly what you need to make fitness a priority in your life and not something that you procrastinate or skip. How you keep track of your health journey is up to you, but we find that it’s an essential element when it comes to fitness success.
The Essential Element
If you want to make the most of your efforts, and who doesn’t, then it’s not just about giving it your all for an hour at the gym or on the track. A healthy fitness routine is supported by a healthy lifestyle. For some, that means revamping their approach to eating and sleeping. For many already active people, it means reevaluating how you approach the pre-workout and the post-workout.
The tips above will help you prepare your body for fitness, which will make your exercise routine more efficient and healthy overall. The post-workout tips will help you recover from your exertions, and this can go a long way in helping to reduce harm to your body due to a lack of nutrition, hydration, and muscle care. It all amounts to making the most of what you do and getting the best out of it.
