Swimming recovery made easy

Follow these four simple tips from sports nutritionist Aaron Deere for faster, more effective recovery.

1. Cool down

It’s worth allocating an extra five to ten minutes at the end of your session to cool down properly with a few gentle, easy laps. This will help get the lactic acid out of your muscles.

2. Stretch off

Once you’re out of the water, take the time to work on tight muscles groups with dynamic, movement-based stretches. Lunging forward with one foot while raising both your arms directly above your head will target your chest, hip flexors and shoulders in one go, all of which tend to get tight during exercise.

3. Refuel

You’ve got a two-hour window after your session when your body is primed for carbohydrate uptake, so try and replace as much glycogen as you can by consuming up to 180g of carbohydrates, ideally via a mixture of glucose and fructose. A brown bread jam sandwich will provide ideal ratios of the two (and taste great!).

4. Rehydrate

The Institute of Medicine recommends that an average man should drink three litres of water a day, while an average woman should drink 2.2 litres. Aim to have consumed at least one of your daily litres with an hour to spare before training to avoid bloating and cramps, then continue drinking steadily throughout the day to hit your daily target afterwards.

Aaron Deere is a sports nutritionist at KX Gym in London   and the developer of the Train Me fitness app. For more information, contact him at aaron.deere@trainme.fitness.