Cool Down Part 2: How to End Every Workout for Best Improvement & Recovery

This is Part 2 of the Cool Down on trying to improve recovery & regeneration. Part 1 can be found here.

I briefly mentioned Autogenic/Parasympathetic Breathing Techniques from our Zoom Pandemic series of 2020. Well worth a listen on my Youtube channel.

I also wrote about Deep Breathing Exercises to Relax or Calm Pre-Race Jitters way back in 2010.

Andrew Huberman has entered the chat

If you aren’t following Andrew Huberman on YouTube, either his long weekly 3 hour podcast series or his shorter Labs Clips series, you should… if you like science based research. I know I do.

In this short snippet, Dr. Galpin and Dr. Huberman discuss the importance of immediate post-workout recovery.

Dr. Andy Galpin is a professor of kinesiology at California State University, Fullerton and a world expert on exercise science. Dr. Andrew Huberman is a tenured professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford University School of Medicine and host of the Huberman Lab podcast.

The full episode can be found on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/juD99_sPWGU

How to End Every Workout for Best Improvement & Recovery:

Box Breathing

In the video below, the first thing he mentions is listen to slow pace music. I know I used to like hard rock or heavy metal before a 60m or 100m. For 400m, I like to be calm, like Bud Winter used to say.

The second advice is called Down Regulation Breathing, for about 3-10 minutes, and breathing through your nose. He calls it “box breathing” because it is a square (like a box) and has 4 corners… 4-4-4-4 or 5-5-5-5. Inhale 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, exhale for 4 seconds, pause for 4 seconds.

Dave Grossman already wrote about his 4-4-4 technique in his book On Combat: The Psychology and Physiology of Deadly Conflict in War and Peace many years ago. So this technique particularly isn’t new. But it certainly adds to the recovery & regeneration discussion.

Why not give it a try? It’s free… it’s not a gadget you have to buy. And it’s not very time consuming. Besides, you have to breathe anyways, so it’s nothing new to you :). Don’t be surprised if you fall asleep!