Recover Gear

When I was at the Blackwater expo, I came across this cool new product. Being a physical therapist, of course I was intrigued by this Recover Gear, and immediately bought 2 for our household. With this system the ice packs are slid into a really tight compression sleeve. (Different sizes and pieces for various body parts are available) So, you can get the ice and compression, and still be mobile! The compression sleeves are really tight and snug. It was so hot at Blackwater this year we all joked that we should race with these on to stay cool! Steve Pettit is the owner and designed this and was such a nice guy. He is a triathlete himself and came up with this idea and started this company. Check out the website recovergear.com You don't have to be "injured" to use this. I suspect I am not the only one who gets sore after a tough workout or 2. Icing down a sore quad or calf only helps you recover more quickly. !!

We are coming into the home stretch for a lot of big races for athletes. Next weekend is Racine, Lake Placid and Evergreen. I have a lot of athletes getting ready to race. I have been hearing whispers here and there of sore knees, sore Achilles, sore legs etc. I know it is really difficult to walk over to the freezer, get out an ice pack and put it on whatever is aching. I am sure that is much tougher than heading out to ride for 4 -5 hours or running 10 miles at whatever pace. The thought of icing or stretching is completely overwhelming. We are about 1/2 way through the season and the training does start to accumulate. Miles and miles on the road can tighten that lateral quad and IT band to the point it can become almost glued to your femur, or turn calves into softballs.

Go get a massage. That is a rough one too. How awful to have to go get a massage to loosen up all the tightness and restrictions that have built up. Gee a massage, or an overuse injury. Becky Sanford is a great massage therapist and gives Multisportmadness members a discount.

Don't train through pain. Yes there is some pain you have to train through to push the limits and get fast. But the pain that causes you to limp, or perform the basics like ...walking or standing up or even breath. Or, pain that sticks with you day after day and appears in workouts each day probably shouldn't be ignored. Ice, stretch, or go see someone because most likely it won't magically disappear. Continually pushing it just to get the workout done isn't going to help in the long run if you wind up sidelined with an injury.

If I sound a bit harsh it is only because it is quite simple. If you have the capacity to get in the hours of training at all the prescribed wattages and HR zones, then you have the ability to take care of your body afterwards. Be nice to it so you can keep on going.