Dr. Andy Galpin: Maximize Recovery to Achieve Fitness & Performance Goals

Introduction

• Recovery is essential for progress in fitness and exercise 
  • Workouts trigger adaptation, but progress occurs during recovery
• Similar to neuroplasticity in the nervous system 
  • Experience triggers rewiring, but actual rewiring occurs away from the experience

Muscle Soreness and Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS)

• Muscle soreness is not solely due to micro-​​tears in the muscle 
  • Can be sore without measurable muscle damage
• DOMS likely involves multiple factors, including immune response and inflammation 
  • Inflammatory response peaks 24–48 hours after exercise, coinciding with DOMS
• Pain receptors (nociceptors) in muscles may play a role 
  • Pressure sensors in muscles respond to changes in tissue volume (swelling)
  • DOMS may be more of a neural feedback loop than actual muscle damage

Gate Theory of Pain

• Explains why rubbing a painful area can provide relief

  • Activates touch sensors that inhibit pain signals through the release of inhibitory neurotransmitters
    Swelling Response and Neural Response in Muscles

• Swelling response triggers a neural response, which recruits pain receptor response

• Muscles require a signal from the nervous system to contract 
  • Motor units and muscle spindles play a role in this process
• Muscle spindles are non-​​contractile and sense stretch 
  • Proprioception: the ability to sense the position and movement of the body
  • Muscle spindles work through gamma motor neurons
  • Sensing stretch and contracting muscles helps maintain balance and prevent falls

Muscle Damage and Pain

• One theory suggests that pressure applied to nerve endings of muscle spindles is responsible for pain signals 
  • Stretching muscles to alleviate soreness might not be the best approach
• Low-​​level movement can be effective at reducing acute soreness 
  • Helps pump fluid out of cells and alleviate pressure on nerve endings

Inflammatory Signals and Free Radicals

• Inflammatory signals may come from free radicals released from mitochondria 
  • Free radicals are hyperreactive oxygen species that can cause inflammation
• Electron transport chain and aerobic metabolism play a role in producing free radicals 
  • Mechanical tension on muscle fibers can cause damage to cell walls, allowing free radicals to escape

Recovery and Exercise Programming

• Low-​​level exercise, percussion, and massage can help with recovery 
  • Moves fluid out of cells and reduces pressure on nerve endings
• Training legs with resistance training can cause soreness 
  • Lighter cardio or low-​​impact work the next day can alleviate soreness more quickly

Supplements and Electrolytes for Recovery

• Momentous: high-​​quality supplements with single-​​ingredient formulations 
  • Ships internationally
• Element: electrolyte drink with optimal ratios of sodium, magnesium, and potassium 
  • Important for cellular functioning and mental and physical performance

• Eight Sleep: smart mattress covers with cooling, heating, and sleep tracking capacity

  • Helps regulate body temperature for better sleep quality and recovery
    Eight Sleep Mattress Covers

• Adjust the temperature of your sleeping environment for optimal sleep stages

• Save $150 at checkout with Eight Sleep Huberman
• Ships in the USA, Canada, UK, select EU countries, and Australia

Recovery and Adaptation in Exercise

• Recovery is when specific adaptations to exercise occur
• Challenging the body to a level that requires change to return to homeostasis
• Super compensation brings you to a new level of homeostasis
• Examples: mechanical tension on muscles, energy reduction

Hormesis and Exercise Adaptation

• Hormesis: dosage or toxicity response to almost everything
• Exercise adaptation is a hormetic stressor
• Immediate responses to exercise: inflammation, oxidative stress, autophagy
• Acute vs. chronic responses: acute inflammation may be high, but baseline inflammation decreases over time

Different Timescales of Recovery

• Acute (24–48 hours) vs. chronic (weeks or months) recovery
• Balancing immediate gratification with delayed gratification
• Using markers (tiredness, soreness, app scores, blood markers) to determine recovery needs

Blood Chemistry in High Performance Athletes

• Can provide powerful information on hydration, sleep deprivation, nutrition, and supplementation
• Dan Garner: expert in blood chemistry for high performance
• Understanding the difference between medical risk factors and optimal values for athletic performance

Heart Rate and Adaptation

• High heart rate during exercise can lead to lower resting heart rate over time

• Balancing immediate optimization with long-​​term adaptation
  Adaptation and Recovery in Training

• Framework for understanding recovery and adaptation

  • Maximize recovery today vs. maximizing adaptation for future performance
  • Consider the training goal and timeline (e.g., Olympics, World Championships, World Cup)
• Acute recovery vs. long-​​term adaptation 
  • Anti-​​inflammatory supplements or drugs (e.g., vitamin C, vitamin E) may blunt hypertrophic adaptations
  • Massage may not block long-​​term adaptation
• Different timescales and modes of recovery 
  • Level 1: Overload 
    • Fatigue and reduced acute performance
    • Recovery period: minutes to days
  • Level 2: Functional Overreaching 
    • Golden target for training
    • Performance is enhanced
    • Recovery time: a few days to a week
  • Level 3: Non-​​Functional Overreaching 
    • No positive benefit after recovery
    • Recovery time: weeks
    • Vicious cycle of training harder without results
  • Level 4: Overtraining 
    • Takes months to recover from
    • Most people who think they are overtrained are not

Deliberate Cold Exposure

• Effects on tissue temperature and mental perception of pain 
  • Some people enjoy the feeling during cold exposure, others enjoy the feeling afterward
  • Similar to exercise, where some people love the act of exercising, while others only enjoy the post-​​exercise feeling

Measuring and Identifying Recovery and Adaptation

• Look at markers such as heart rate, inflammatory markers, and stress levels 
  • Maximum heart rate does not change with training, but resting heart rate can decrease
  • Inflammatory markers can vary greatly depending on the individual and the marker
  • Be cautious when interpreting research or social media claims about marker changes
• Consider the physiological relevance of marker changes 
  • Some markers need a significant increase to be relevant, while others only need a small change
  • Understand the context and magnitude of marker changes to make informed decisions about training and recovery

Tools for Recovery and Adaptation

• Understand the training goal and timeline to choose the appropriate recovery tools
• Consider the balance between acute recovery and long-​​term adaptation
• Be cautious with supplements or interventions that may blunt long-​​term adaptations
• Use tools like massage that do not block long-​​term adaptation
• Monitor markers and physiological relevance to make informed decisions about training and recovery 

Overreaching and Overtraining in Exercise

• Non-​​functional overreaching: temporary state of fatigue from intense exercise 
  • Can recover in a few days with rest
  • More common than true overtraining
• Overtraining: prolonged state of fatigue and decreased performance 
  • Can take weeks or months to recover
  • Rare and difficult to diagnose
  • No clinical test or blood panel to identify overtraining
• Important to focus on actions (verbs) rather than labels (nouns) when addressing overreaching and overtraining

Recovery Strategies

• Start recovery process immediately after workout 
  • High peak of stress followed by sharp recovery is necessary for adaptation
• Listen to slow-​​paced music after exercise 
  • Fast-​​paced music may slow down recovery
• Down-​​regulation breathing 
  • Helps kick start recovery process

Addressing Acute Overload

• Strategies for immediate post-​​workout recovery or 1–2 days after intense exercise
• Nutrition, hydration, and supplementation to be covered in the next episode
• Focus on actions to enhance recovery and prevent overtraining

Importance of Recovery

• Ensuring proper recovery helps prevent overreaching and overtraining
• Allows for optimal adaptation and performance improvement

• Recognize the difference between functional overreaching, overtraining, and being overtrained

  • Avoid making decisions based on labels or states, focus on actions and processes
    Post-​​Workout Recovery and Stress Reduction

• Laying down for 3–10 minutes after a workout, focusing on breathing

  • Box breathing: inhale for 3–8 seconds, hold for the same duration, exhale for the same duration, hold for the same duration
  • Triangle breathing: inhale, hold, exhale, and immediately inhale again
  • Experiment to find the best method for you
• Breathing exercises can be done in the shower for added relaxation
• Research shows that box breathing and cyclic sighing (two inhales followed by an extended exhale) can significantly decrease resting heart rate and increase heart rate variability 
  • Extended exhales are key for calming response and stress reduction
• Inhales are associated with an uptick in sympathetic state, while exhales are associated with an uptick in parasympathetic state 
  • Exhaling fully before performing a high-​​precision task can improve performance
• Faster recovery to baseline heart rate after exercise is correlated with better training results

Alleviating Post-​​Workout Soreness

• Soreness is not caused by lactate

• Strategies to alleviate soreness:

  • Wear compression gear (e.g., leggings, rash guards, tight-​​fitting clothes) 
    • Can prevent soreness if worn immediately after a workout
    • Examples of compression gear: compression pants, leggings, long sleeve shirts, high socks
  • Gentle movement and stretching to increase blood flow and promote healing
  • Foam rolling or self-​​massage to release tight muscles and fascia
  • Cold therapy (e.g., ice baths or cold showers) to reduce inflammation and promote recovery
  • Adequate sleep and nutrition to support the body’s natural healing processes
    Compression Gear and Soreness Relief

• Compression gear can enhance muscle recovery

  • Wearing compression gear during or after a workout can help offset soreness
  • Focus on the exercising tissue for best results
  • Compression gear can also be worn during long flights to help with blood coagulation and athletic performance

Other Methods to Alleviate Acute Soreness

• Pressure manipulation

  • Compression boots or garments
  • Massage and body work
  • These methods work by moving fluid in and out of the tissue and enhancing blood flow

• Thermal strategies

  • Cold water immersion 
    • Effective at reducing muscle soreness
    • Can be used in moderation depending on the individual’s goals and priorities
    • Best approach is submersion in cold water (40–50°F) for 15+ minutes or sub 40°F for 5 minutes
  • Hot and cold contrast therapy 
    • No clear guidelines, but alternating between hot and cold can be beneficial
    • Hot baths can help with stiffness and soreness the next day

Dr. Susannah Soberg’s Thermal Capacity Research

• Aimed at increasing thermal capacity and brown adipose tissue storage

• Recommended thresholds for adaptation response:

  • 57 minutes per week of uncomfortable but safe heat (e.g., sauna)
  • 11 minutes per week of cold exposure
  • These durations can be broken up into multiple sessions or done all at once
    Cold Protocols and Subjectivity

• Cold protocols lack thorough studies examining temperature by time requirements

• Pain is not a defined outcome, heavily influenced by perception
• Anecdotal experiences with hot and cold contrast in athletes vary
• Cold showers not as effective as cold water immersion for muscle recovery 
  • Difficult to study due to variations in body coverage and size
  • Cold baths may provide better surface area coverage

Deliberate Cold Exposure

• Cold showers better than nothing, cold immersion in circulating cold water or ice bath better than cold shower
• Moving water increases the effectiveness of cold exposure
• Being still in cold water is less effective

Heat Exposure and Sperm Health

• Sauna and hot tub use can severely limit the number of motile sperm 
  • Not reliable enough for contraception, but detrimental for those trying to conceive
• Ice pack near the groin can help mitigate the negative effects of heat exposure on sperm health

Combining Recovery Stimuli

• Use a combination of physical and holistic approaches (e.g., breathwork and thermal stress)
• Choose tactics based on availability and personal preferences
• Light swimming in cold water while regulating breathing can provide compression and thermal benefits

Longer Form Recovery and Overtraining

• Phase 1: Prevent overtraining by managing training load and intensity
• Phase 2: Monitor for signs of overtraining using cost-​​free or high-​​tech tools
• Phase 3: Recover from overtraining by adjusting training and implementing recovery strategies

Fatigue Management

• Various terms used in technology and sports performance world (e.g., readiness score, recovery score, strain, load)

• All terms aim to measure and manage fatigue levels in athletes and individuals
  Understanding Overreaching and Overtraining in Sports Performance

• Overreaching and overtraining can lead to performance decline

  • Two types of overreaching: functional and non-functional
  • Functional overreaching: temporary performance decline followed by improved performance
  • Non-​​functional overreaching: prolonged performance decline without improvement
• Three markers to monitor for overreaching: 
  1. Performance metric (e.g., times, squat numbers, power)
  2. Physiology (e.g., resting heart rate, biomarkers, heart rate variability)
  3. Symptomology (e.g., fatigue, mood, motivation)
• Performance drops for a few days can be normal during training 
  • Longer drops in performance may indicate overreaching or overtraining
  • Adjustments may be needed depending on the proximity to competition or peak performance

Mechanisms Behind Overreaching and Overtraining

• Studies have shown changes in catecholamine levels (e.g., epinephrine, norepinephrine) during overreaching 
  • Increased levels can lead to sleep disturbances and systemic fatigue
• Muscle biopsies reveal changes in cellular signaling proteins and receptor concentrations 
  • Map kinases, associated with anabolic response and muscle protein synthesis, are affected
  • Androgen and glucocorticoid receptor concentrations are reduced during overreaching

Tools to Mitigate Overreaching and Overtraining

• Breathing techniques
• Movement and exercise adjustments
• Compression garments
• Thermal therapies
• Psychological and motivational strategies

Key Takeaways

• Overreaching and overtraining can negatively impact sports performance
• Monitoring performance, physiology, and symptomology can help identify overreaching
• Understanding the mechanisms behind overreaching can inform strategies to mitigate its effects

• Utilizing various tools and techniques can help athletes manage and prevent overreaching and overtraining
  Overtraining and Its Effects on the Body

• Overtraining can lead to downregulation of receptors for stress hormones like epinephrine and testosterone

  • This can cause desensitization to these hormones and reduce overall sensitivity
• Overtraining can cause significant damage in as little as two weeks 
  • Can lead to non-​​functional overreaching or overtraining syndrome
• Symptoms of overtraining include: 
  • Performance decrements
  • Increased resting heart rate
  • Decreased heart rate variability (HRV)
  • Decreased body weight
  • Changes in motivation, adherence, appetite, and mood
  • Sleep disturbances and disruptions

Effects of Overtraining on Sleep

• Elevated nocturnal epinephrine levels can diminish REM sleep 
  • REM sleep is important for discarding the emotional load of the previous day’s experiences
  • Disrupted emotional state can result from lack of REM sleep
• Measuring eye movement can help understand total stress load and differentiate types of stress (e.g., caffeine use, alcohol use, sleep deprivation)

Biomarkers of Overtraining

• Sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) levels can rise with overtraining 
  • SHBG binds up free testosterone, leading to a decrease in available testosterone
  • Can also be affected by calorie restriction

• Monitoring blood markers like SHBG can help identify overtraining early on
  Training Load and Cortisol

• Training load can be too high, leading to issues in cortisol levels

• Website available to plug in blood chemistry values and determine if changes are physiologically meaningful or within error margin
• Cortisol and DHEA ratio can provide insights into cortisol dysregulation 
  • Ratio too high: associated with metabolic syndrome
  • Ratio too low: associated with cognitive problems like aggression and mood
  • Ideal ratio: around 0.9

Cortisol Modulators

• Ashwagandha and Rhodiola rosea: cortisol modulators, not blunters 
  • Help keep cortisol within normative range
  • Rhodiola may enhance strength gains but reduce muscular endurance
• Cortisol levels should be measured multiple times throughout the day 
  • Single baseline blood marker not enough
  • Saliva testing can be useful for real-​​world life experiments

Healthy Cortisol Pattern

• Highest levels of cortisol in the morning 
  • Associated with waking up and viewing bright light
  • Leads to enhanced mood, alertness, and immune system function
• Cortisol should spike throughout the day but return to baseline quickly 
  • High cortisol levels in the afternoon can be a signature of depression

• Regulating cortisol involves understanding its pattern and using downregulation methods like breathing and exercise

  • Cortisol is necessary for progress in exercise training and reducing inflammation
    Cortisol and Adaptation

• Suppressing cortisol can suppress adaptation

• Large spikes in cortisol followed by quick recovery are ideal for hormetic stress
• Blunting cortisol can cause immunosuppression, especially early in the day
• Cortisol regulation should be done strategically

Ashwagandha and Rhodiola

• Not part of foundational athlete packages
• Can be counterproductive if taken before training
• Should only be used if needed to bring cortisol levels back to normal values

Carbohydrates and Cortisol

• Starchy carbohydrates can inhibit cortisol
• Carbohydrates can help with sleep and stress reduction
• Ingesting carbohydrates can signal the body that energy is available, reducing the need for cortisol

Markers of Stress

• Resting heart rate can elevate with excessive stress load
• Heart rate variability (HRV) is a better indicator of stress and recovery
• High HRV indicates more variation in heart rate, meaning better recovery
• Low HRV indicates less variation, meaning more stress

• Compare HRV to yourself, not others, and measure under the same circumstances every day
  Using HRV Measurements for Recovery and Performance

• Measure HRV at the same time daily, ideally first thing in the morning

  • Consistency in measurement is crucial for accurate data
• Collect HRV data for at least a month before making any changes based on it 
  • Compare current HRV to the last week’s average and historical average
  • Compare HRV on the same day of the week (e.g., Monday to Monday) to account for weekly schedules
• If HRV deviates more than 5% from the normal range, consider the following: 
  • Was the data collected accurately and consistently?
  • Is the deviation acute (just today) or chronic (more than five days)?
  • Are you in an adaptation phase where stress is expected, or a peaking phase where recovery is the focus?

Acute State Shifters for HRV

• Physical movement (e.g., yoga, jumping jacks, starting a workout) 
  • Can improve HRV and overall feeling within seconds
• Breathing techniques (e.g., up-​​regulation breathing, hyperventilation strategies) 
  • Opposite of down-​​regulation breathing, accentuate inhale or restrict exhale
• Motivational tools (e.g., music, quotes, coaching tactics, finding one’s “why”)
  • Use strategically to avoid diminishing effects over time

Balancing Stimulants and Recovery

• Avoid using stimulants (e.g., caffeine, energy drinks, pre-​​workout nootropics) for every workout 
  • Can lead to catecholamine system crash and dependency
• Implement a rule of not using stimulants for two workouts in a row 
  • Focus on form and attention during workouts without stimulants
• Allow the mind to drift during long-​​duration endurance work 
  • Helps with mental recovery and relaxation 

Signal-​​to-​​Noise Ratio and Nervous System

• Nervous system works based on signal-​​to-​​noise ratio
• Example: body part in contact with a surface for a long time, we forget about it due to low signal-to-noise

Stimulants and Performance Enhancement

• Caffeine and other stimulants can have a strong performance-​​enhancing effect
• Especially effective when not used consistently and taken during a rough day

Acute State Shifters for Mood and Performance

• Breath work, food, and comfort foods can change mood
• Light exposure can also help (brighter lights or going outside)
• Drawing a physical line on the ground as a mental barrier for performance
• Engaging in brain games or puzzles to shift focus and improve performance

Phone Use During Training

• Phones can be a distraction and impede workout motivation and performance
• Treat phone as a separate individual with attention issues
• Set a complete playlist before workout and avoid changing it during the workout

Mirrors in Resistance Training

• Mirrors can be helpful for muscle hypertrophy and observing form
• Flexing in between sets can augment muscle gains
• However, mirrors can be detrimental for movement learning and explosive exercises
• Important to balance technology use with understanding one’s own physiology

HRV (Heart Rate Variability) and Recovery

• Monitor HRV for signs of reduced recovery
• If HRV is reduced for 3–4 days, start paying more attention and consider additional tests
• If HRV is reduced for more than 7 days, consider chronic state shifters

• Examples of chronic state shifters: thermal stress (cold water immersion) can initially lower HRV but increase it over time (up to 180 minutes post-​​immersion)
  Immediate Sympathetic Response and Recovery

• Immediate sympathetic response occurs in most people within 30 minutes

  • Score improves for several hours afterwards
• Heat can have a similar effect 
  • Acute fix, but can also have a chronic effect over time

Sleep and Recovery

• Exploring reasons for poor sleep and low HRV 
  • If sleep is compromised, focus on improving sleep quality 
    • Brain activities like games, music, and other tricks may not have a chronic effect
  • Social connection has been shown to improve recovery over time
  • Journaling and meditation have both acute and chronic effects on recovery
• Adaptogens, electrolytes, food, and hydration can also have a chronic effect on recovery

Reassessing Training Program

• If recovery is not improving, consider reducing training intensity or removing it altogether 
  • Drop training to 50% or less until recovery rebounds back to baseline

Recovery for Non-​​Competitive Exercisers

• For those who exercise for health, aesthetics, and longevity without pushing themselves too hard 
  • Can we assume they are recovering well, or are they not creating enough of an adaptation response?
  • Is the ability to recover something that needs to be trained, like focus?

Improving Recovery System

• Can the recovery system (neurotransmitters, hormones, neural, muscular, immune-​​based) become better? 
  • Can it become faster and more effective?
  • Can we think of the recovery system as a blade that gets sharper by engaging recovery?
• If so, there’s a strong reason for people to push harder than comfortable occasionally to ensure the system doesn’t slide back 
  • Physiology is always listening and responding to what we do

Bowling Alley Analogy

• The recovery system can be compared to a bowling alley with bumper lanes 
  • Spending time in the gutter (under-​​recovering) and on the pins (over-​​recovering)
  • The goal is to find the right balance between pushing hard and allowing for recovery
  • Continuously adapting and adjusting to maintain optimal recovery and performance