Brett's Tips for Faster Recovery

Faster recovery is key to having a great time in endurance sports.  Less time in pain and on the couch means more living!  Case in point - I raced the Texas Trails Endurance 50 mile trail run on Saturday. In a day's time, I was able to have a nice jog around my neighborhood in the cool evening weather to check out all the Christmas lights.  Here's how you can do the same:

1. Don't do races that you aren't ready for. If you aren't running 50 miles in an entire week, why in the world would you try to run it in one day?  Know your limits!
2. Eat by feel for at least the next day.  If you crave it, your body is telling you that you need it.
3. Elevate your legs when you can.  This helps them feel better faster.
4. If you are driving or flying home, make sure to get up and move around every hour. Prolonged sitting stiffens you up and can even lead to blood clots.
5. Sprinkle a little extra salt on your food and drinks.  This helps water "stick" to your body better and rehydrate you.
6. Fruits and veggies are loaded with healing nutrition. Make those readily available and try to snack on them instead of other foods.
7. Put Ibuprofin in your recovery bag.  Being in less pain helps you make better decisions and able to take care of yourself.
8. Caffeine post-race will make you more alert and give you the energy boost to make better decisions about what you eat and do.
9. Don't wreck yourself in the race.  There's healthy and then there's destructive.  Races are like buses; there's another one coming along in 5 minutes.
10. Stamina takes time. Tempering steel takes thousands of strikes to change it from soft to strong.  If you aren't where you want to be yet, the only answer is "more time."  Keep at it!

When I first did a similar 50 miler several years ago, I finished in the worst pain of my life.  And I was a total wreck for many days afterwards.  The difference between now and then is amazing.  Try those tips and share your own in the comments!

Results from the race here.

HR, speed, elevation and more of my race numbers here.