Bodies Naturally Bounce Back Quickly From Hard Workouts

A study detailed in the Journal of Applied Physiology suggests that the human body rebounds from tough workouts faster than was previously thought.  The study claims that training harder more often will not run a body into fatigue as is preached by many coaches, cycling coaches included.

The research studied the exercise programs and recovery times of 25 men that were competing in the Ironman Triathlon.  This is a grueling race where the participant swims 2.4 miles, bikes 112 miles, and then runs a full marathon. 

The researchers were quite surprised at the recovery time for the 25 athletes in the study.  Just one day after the race, the athletes’ heart rate, cardiac output, and blood pressure had returned to normal. 

The cardiovascular blood flow of a human body is controlled by the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system.  The sympathetic system quickens the heart rate when the body is under stress or work.  The parasympathetic nervous system reverses the effects of the sympathetic system.

Trained athletes usually have increased parasympathetic effects at normal rest levels.  This means that a well-trained athlete would have lower resting heart rate than a less-trained athlete.  The researchers still expected the effects of the sympathetic system (increased heart rate), to last well after the race.  This was not the case.

This study is very interesting because some top cyclists have talked about training hard non-stop.  In fact, Floyd Landis and Lance Armstrong have both presented the argument that their bodies have no problem recovering from hard races by the next day. 

I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard a coach tell me that doing hard intervals more than twice a week will wear out your body.  It looks like they may have been giving the wrong advice all along.

For a well rounded off season workout program, check out Cyclo-Core

12 November 2007 | Nutrition | Comments