143 recovery

This is the first WOD of the 2014 Open we’ve seen with heavy weights, and no doubt you pushed yourself so hard that you’re feeling it now.
It’s important to plan out your recovery as much as you planned out how you attacked this workout. The WOD Life has outlined some recovery drills you can do to help ease the discomfort you might feel in the coming days. Follow these tips and you’ll be back at again for 14.4!

TIP 1  – Roll out your back, hamstrings, and calves

Your lower back was taxed on this workout, and it often takes longer to heal than other parts of the body since it’s working all the time to stabilise your spine. Take extra care with this area! Check out Dr. Mark Cheng’s article and video about foam rolling for lower back and quad pain here.

Also, check out this video from Athlete Cell about 14.3 Posterior Chain Recovery – we all know you need a bit of that!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTohgufqB7o

TIP 2 – Cool down actively

I went for a short jog after I finished 14.3, and it made a world of difference. Swim, bike, walk, or row… any active movement directly after the workout will allow you to break up some of the lactic acid that built up during the workout. Do the same thing the day after your workout – the worst thing you can do is sit around all day after this one!

TIP 3 – Don’t forget other muscles!

You may be feeling 14.3 in your lower back, hamstrings, and glutes, but don’t forget about the other muscles you worked hard. Your external hip rotators, abdominals, and ribs will all be fatigued as well. External hip rotators are important to keep your knees tracking over your feet, and increasing your mobility here will help ease tension in your hip flexors. Kelly Starrett’s MobilityWOD has a great guide to help you unlock your hips and improve your mobility. Your ribs and abdominals both support and connect to your back, so it’s important to keep them mobile in order to decrease the amount of strain that’s put on your spine and the surrounding muscles post-workout.

If you follow these three simple tips you will be back in the game in no time! Don’t forget to stay hydrated, and we’re looking forward to seeing your scores on 14.4!