The workouts you do are as good as the recover that follows. How can you get the best out of each session? If you are like every single triathlete as I see, the coach tells you to cool down and you skip the active recovery and start packing your stuff. You immediately rush to the car to put things away and then jump in the shower to head to work.  Then a couple of days or weeks later, the athlete tells the coach (me), I am hurt, injured, I think I pulled something or similar.

Some key components you should keep in mind after a hard workout:

• carbohydrate or protein in shake or smoothie
• stretching or rolling in a foam roller
• ice bath or ice cold bath
• compression socks
• massage stick

It is very important that you make time to recovery and stretching.