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The importance of stretching before your workout is often stressed, but what about the cooldown? Although of equal importance, many people neglect the cooldown after physical activity. Cooling down after a workout helps bring your body back to its natural resting state and aids in recovery.
These exercises slow down your heart rate, lower blood pressure, prevent blood from pooling in your legs and feet and regulate body temperature and breathing rate. Furthermore, the cooldown counteracts the dizziness some people experience from intense periods of exercise.
High-energy bursts of physical activity may cause blood vessels in the legs to expand. From there, blood rushes into your legs and feet and slows down your heart rate. When this happens too quickly during exercise, you may feel lightheaded, nauseated and experience dizziness. Cooling down helps the blood recirculate through your body, warding off potential fainting spells.
What’s a Good Cooldown Routine?
During a workout, your body adjusts to the exercise, shifting energy and resources to the task at hand, muscles in use and the intensity level. As this occurs, oxygen-filled blood cells travel toward the muscles in use to carry away any metabolic byproducts.
An effective cooldown reverses this process. Immediately after a workout, recovery exercises should target the muscles used, as they’ve likely been overworked. Beyond helping your body return to its pre-workout state, cooldown exercises assist with muscle and tissue repair, improving strength, preventing muscle cramps and spasms to get your body ready for the next workout.
When you fail to cool down after physical activity:
- Your body does not flush out the waste that has been accumulated.
- Your muscles may adhere together, so the group can’t be fully used in your next workout.
- Injury risk increases, whether after the workout or during your next one.
Putting Together an Effective Cooldown
To start, cooldowns should incorporate dynamic, wide movements that address the muscles worked. High-intensity activity must be followed up with lower-intensity exercises and stretches.
Proper cooldowns will vary by activity or workout routine, but this process may entail the following:
- Stretching when your muscles are still warm. Waiting increases the chance of muscle strain or sprain.
- Stretching your targeted muscles for five minutes, using three to five types.
- Holding each stretch for 15 to 30 seconds. Deep breathing gradually brings down the heart rate.
- Walking at a moderate pace.
- Swimming a few laps in the pool.
- Using a foam roller to massage your body’s major muscle groups.
- Incorporating one flexibility workout into your weekly routine, such as yoga.
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