Active Recovery

While sleep and complete rest are sometimes necessary, active recovery is worth considering on occasion. Active recovery is a fancy way of saying "easy day"... you can do what you usually do, just shorten up your workout and slow down the pace. For swimming, drill and pull sets save your legs while building upper body strength. Also, hydrotherapy is an added benefit! If you bike, "spin" easy to keep your legs moving through a range of motion. Running is a bit trickier... trail running provides a good option for making sure you keep the pace relaxed. Regardless of the activity you choose, active recovery can help prepare you for your next hard workout by keeping your muscles loose and flushing out metabolic waste products (aka what makes your muscles hurt). Yoga is another good option for both stretching and increasing core strength. Personally, I like to use my active recovery days to cross-train!