Why Do We Prescribe Light Strength and Mobility After Races ?
Obviously, too little rest after a race can be problematic but also too much can be less than ideal.
Once the initial inflammation and muscle soreness have settled which is typically 3-7 days depending on the race distance, your conditioning and how hard you send it, the goal of the recovery period should include to remodel and regain function of damaged tissue.
Tendons Need Load
Unlike muscle, tendons have a relatively poor blood supply and rely heavily on controlled loading to stimulate repair. For collagen production to occur, tendons need load to stimulate the signalling required for collagen to be produced and put to good use.
Muscles Also Need Signalling
After a race, provided you’ve raced somewhat hard, there will likely be muscle fibre disruption, reduced neuromuscular recruitment, losses in strength and reduced coordination. Much like how people actually can lift much heavier in the first few weeks of strength training despite not much actual strength gains. It all comes down to how the brain recruits muscle fibres.
I’ve had athletes do body weight squats 4 days post race and you can see one glute engage then the other ½ a second later. By the time they’re on their 4th set of 10 squats, both glutes are firing simultaneously. It’s pretty wild how quickly strength activations can rewire how the muscles are firing and the body is working.
Fascial Realignment and Lengthening
Fascia is the connective tissue network that surrounds and links muscles throughout the body. There can be a lot of fascial micro damage during a race or during hard sessions.
Gentle movement and strength exercises improve tissue hydration and help restore the normal sliding between fascial layers.
This is one reason why many athletes who think they’ve got micro tears in their calf muscle can go to an experienced therapist and have the fascia ‘Grastined’ and experience almost complete reversal of the tightness and soreness they have in their calf muscle.
Anecdotally I’ve found heat, ‘Graston’ then activations extremely helpful to getting good mobility and pain free movement back fast. When the fascial work doesn’t change the tightness or soreness it’s a good sign it’s more muscular damage you’re dealing with.
Mental Health/ Nervous System Reset
Most athletes are pretty hardwired to need exercise especially after getting fit enough to race an event well. A sudden shutdown of movement is not recommended as the lack of movement and/or time outside and/or the fatigue of the race combined with the overwhelming to do list you’ve been putting off until after your race slapping you across the face can all be a bit much.
Classic recommendations once initial post pain has largely settled:
Bodyweight calf raises
Split squats
Single-leg balance work
Controlled eccentric exercises
Remember you’re doing controlled load so nothing should be painful or overly risky.
