10 ways to recover from a soccer match

“Your body is only as good as its ability to recover” – Verne Gambetta

We all know the value of hard work and its benefits in football performance. Research is endless on how consistent effort and diligent work produce various results and how these positives can influence your ability to perform at your best, but when do results actually come? Cardiovascular conditioning, strength training, power development, mobility, and all the other physical workouts your body goes through each week have a profound effect on our success, but are we really getting better while we train or is it the result of time after? we leave the field or the gym?

I think this question can be answered by saying “both”, but let me explain further. The different ways we can improve, as players, come through various “channels” that can happen instantly and/or over a certain period of time. Exercise scientists call these channels immediate recovery (between reps or repeated sprints in a game), short-term recovery (between sets or reps of speed work), and training recovery (between practices or games). For example, when we train on a technical skill, our coach may give us an idea of ​​a new and better way to achieve the end result. This instant realization immediately makes us a more efficient and effective player on the field. However, the benefit of practicing and perfecting that skill will require thousands of repetitions and hours of work until it can become a constant tool during competition.

The same can be assumed with speed, agility, strength, and stamina. The skill sets we learn in acceleration and deceleration are sometimes instantaneous; how to use your arms correctly when running However, most of the physical benefits of training don’t occur until you’re a long way from the training ground. It is in this “down time” or recovery process that our body begins to adapt to the stress of training and becomes stronger and more capable of working at higher levels of performance (also known as supercompensation). This process is where I feel most players don’t understand or take advantage of when working to improve their game, and where I want to spend the rest of this post talking.

Recovery is one of the least understood and least researched components of the training-adaptation cycle, yet it is the most important part of our training routine. It may be the reason why you don’t continue to improve, get fitter and more explosive… instead you find yourself stagnant and injured.

“We define recovery, from a practical perspective, as the ability to meet or exceed performance in a particular activity.” Which means that if we just finished an hour and a half of intense training, our body’s ability to perform will be reduced for a period of time. We all know that we can’t play another 90-minute game at full intensity in 2-3 hours after the last one, but what about in 2-3 days? And what about intense training on consecutive days… consecutive weeks… consecutive months? How does this affect us?

“It is well accepted that overload is necessary for improvement, while overtraining results in breakdown at some level, which impairs rather than enhances performance. Overtraining is generally thought of strictly in terms of training, but overtraining can also be expressed as in recovery. If the rate of recovery can be improved, higher training volumes can be performed without incurring the negative effect of overtraining.” – Training Recovery: A Brief Review; Bishop; Jones; Woods; Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 22(3): 1015-1024, May 2008

Let’s look at a simplified chart of how our bodies and performance can benefit from the proper ratio of training to rest. As you can see below, the stimulus (in our case it would be any type of intense training) causes stress that decreases the body’s ability to perform at a given level. If the proper amount of recovery (shown as Recovery), the adaptive capacity of the body does not return above the original form before the next stimulus. This can be very detrimental, especially if we continue this pattern for a training period (week) leading up to a game (competition). As you can see, the performance capacity of the players is much lower than when they started.

This trend is often seen in youth soccer, when a coach or player has a “no pain, no gain” mentality and decides to work as hard as time allows each time they train. The unfortunate part is that this not only leads to poor performance, but also to injury.

On the other hand, proper recovery can have opposite effects on a player’s performance, if done correctly. Looking at the chart below, we can see the opposite trend where the player is now getting adequate recovery and making progress, which we call supercompensation.

So how much time does it really take to adapt to training (perform better/get in better shape to play) and can we decrease the time needed? In a summary answer to both questions… nobody knows. There is very little research that has consistent results from valid populations to prove an answer, yet there are many favorite recovery rituals and habits that thousands of athletes apply and rely on every day. So, I’ll list them below and let you get an idea of ​​what works for you.

All of these have been researched and have shown some success value, even if it’s just anecdotal and not proven by real numbers…

one) proper nutrition – Research has shown that timing of consuming nutrient dense foods that are high in carbohydrates + protein/amino acids immediately after exercise is most beneficial. For high-intensity exercise > 90 minutes, choose one of the following to consume within: 30 minutes after training/game: Turkey Sandwich on Whole Wheat (WW) or Bagel WW, Bowl of Cereal with Skim Milk, Chicken Pasta (or lean protein source), tuna sandwich on WW bread or WW bagel, oatmeal with skim milk or H2O with 2 tbsp peanut butter, or a good old-fashioned peanut butter and jelly sandwich on WW or WW bagel.

two) rehydration – Research is good in this case. You must do it to recover well. Studies recommend the inclusion of a fluid containing sodium (50 mmol/L) along with some potassium and carbohydrates (sugar). A lot of sports drinks will suffice, but make sure you’re getting enough, which means taking in as much fluid as you lost. One 16 oz sports drink directly after training/game + another 75-120 oz of water throughout the day.

3) narrowing – this is the preferred method of recovery tactics by most coaches and clubs around the world as it will allow for constant training and improvement without breaking the rhythm that players may have mid-season. Tapering is the idea that reducing training volume (total time/duration) or intensity (% max effort) by a certain amount during concurrent training sessions will allow consistent recovery throughout a given week. All coaches and teams should do this in their respective training weeks, and it can result in up to a 6% improvement in training during that same week.

4) Compression – Have you ever seen Allen Iverson and all those other NBA players wearing tights and long sleeves under their uniforms…or what about runners wearing socks that only cover their calves? Well, as cool as they look, they do serve a purpose. These compression sleeves and shorts (most often worn by soccer players) are great for snapping strawberries while sliding and support muscles to eliminate swelling. This reduction of an inflammatory response works wonders to stave off soreness and return to game intensity on consecutive days.

5) cool down – I know, you never stretch after training. You’re tired, dirty, hungry, and you couldn’t care less what your coach has to say about your missed shot inside the box. Well, this will be the best and easiest way to make sure that he is recovering properly. All the processes and chemical releases that occur during intense exercise leave microtears and damage in the muscles. Your hammies are in dire need of adequate blood flow to give them the nutrition they need to get better and what they want to do is contract to a shorter length. Stretching passively (another person) or actively (yourself) shows a great effect in giving your muscles exactly what they need for immediate relief.

6) ice baths – also known as cryotherapy, is a favorite way for college players to get the most bang for their buck between 2 times a day. As terribly annoying as it is, soaking your legs in an ice cube for 15 minutes has shown great effect in reducing swelling and pain, as well as keeping you awake faster than a Starbucks with 6 shots of espresso.

7) Hyperbaric Chambers – this is for all the million dollar players who don’t have a claustrophobic tendency. The idea that creating more oxygen and atmospheric pressure in the air around you forces your body to take in and use the benefits of oxygen has some impressive results. Just $10,000 and a good night’s sleep in a coffin-like bedroom will see you do your best for the next high school thriller over time.

8) massage therapy – A whole new industry has sprung up around this idea. Hands-on therapy is used to manipulate muscle and soft tissue damaged by training, making it possible for swelling and destructive elements in the local area to go away and for the good stuff to get in faster. If it doesn’t work, don’t tell anyone, because this feels so good I’m willing to pass it up.

9) Ergogenics/Supplements – Creatine, amino acids, Flinstone vitamins, and ginseng have been investigated and have shown mixed results. My advice is to stick with something cheap, easy and that at least shows good potential, like taking a good quality multivitamin containing iron and folic acid a few hours after your workout.

10) BREAK – Doing nothing may be the hardest thing to fit into your routine, but it may be the best for you. Some studies show that the body cannot fully recover from intense exercise for up to 72 hours or more. The above will shorten this process, but you can never go wrong by simply relaxing the modalities and letting your body do its thing.

My advice and the best recipe for the most effective recovery would be this: After training, to be ready for the next day…stretch while drinking a Gatorade before heading off the field, all while wearing compression shorts during the session . . 30 minutes after training, eat a meal that includes whole wheat carbohydrates, a lean protein, and 16-14 oz. water while submerging waist down in 15 degree water. 2 hours post workout, take a multivitamin (with iron), stretch and foam roll all lower body muscle groups.

until next time

John

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