While recovering from the stresses of the daily life, a chronic or even a traumatic injury, or surgery, are you hindering your body from recovery?
1/ Sleep:
Getting enough good quality sleep will be fundamental to optimise recovery. Studies have shown that setting a bed routine, avoiding excess caffeine and avoiding blue light before bed considerably increase the quality of your sleep and will positively impact your mental and physical health.
2/ Hydration and nutrition:
They both will also play a huge role in your recovery. Eating good quality and nutritious food as well as keeping hydrated is already well known to help the body recover. But are you eating enough, and therefore allowing your body enough nutrients to repair what needs to be? Are you avoiding inflammatory foods and beverages such as processed, sugary foods and alcoholic beverages?
Nutrition can be a powerful tool for or against your recovery.
3/ Stress:
Not all forms of stress are bad but the ones that affect your sleep, breathing pattern or general tension are certainly not helping your recovery. Considering meditation and or breathing exercises, hot baths, massage therapy, gentle outdoors activity or anything that makes YOU feel good, will help lower your stress levels and improve recovery.
4/ Movement and activity:
When appropriate, movement is the best way to promote blood circulation and allows for a better distribution of oxygen and nutrients throughout the body. Depending on the extend or location of your injury you might be able to move differently and practice another activity. And, who knows, maybe discover a new favourite hobby!
Don’t hesitate to discuss these points with your therapist when visiting the clinic. You are only seeing them so often therefore your input on the daily will be crucial to optimise your recovery and reach your goals for; lifting the kids, running Saturday park run or even cycling across the UK pain-free!
