EISPIRATEN

I know what i do a day or two prior to a long, tough hike. Carb-load water hoard. blah blah blah...... But after the hike is more important i think.
One would think that the best bet is to stay off their feet as much as possible.
And just rest alot. But i think this isnt always whats needed.
What about major electrolyte loss, re-hydration, replenishing lost energy stores, stretching strained or sore muscles, etc.

The first thing I do after a hike is drink a bottle of Myoplex with 42 grams of protein and 50% RDA of most vitamins and minerals. The protein and nutrient blast begins repairs of muscle damage.

edenooch wrote:....rest alot. But i think this isnt always whats needed.
What about major electrolyte loss, re-hydration, replenishing lost energy stores, stretching strained or sore muscles, etc.

It seems to me it's best to not get so dehydrated.... You gotta rest though as you can't rehydrate as quickly as you dehydrate no matter what... Unless you got an IV

Major dehydration, there are various re hydration solutions and I keep one or two for longer trips just in case, severe dehydration may require hospitalization

Again it would be best to not expend your total energy reserves, should something happen you'll need a reserve. R&R is the only cure IMO

Strength / endurance training can and will expand your reserves

Stretching a strained muscle is a no no, gentle stretching is ok for sore muscles, I like Icy Hot for really sore muscles but nobody around me does

There is nothing magic IMO about your recovery, everybody recovers at mostly the same rate. Dr's come up against this all the time, they don't make the rules. It takes 6-8 weeks for a fracture to heal, that's it...

Pushing it can set you back to square one.

After breaking a big chunk off L5 and repeatedly trying to push it, I finally figured it out. Yeah I'm a stubborn old bone head, but if you whack me in the head enough with the answer I'll get it sooner or later

bong hits and tacos help repair my body after a long walk

friendowl wrote:bong hits and tacos help repair my body after a long walk

I think that would just put me to sleep!

edenooch wrote:I know what i do a day or two prior to a long, tough hike. Carb-load water hoard. blah blah blah...... But after the hike is more important i think.

both important. you want to get back to a 'steady state' as quickly as possible. that includes replenishing glycogen stores, muscle recovery, hydration / electrolytes, and overall body recovery.

when you are doing multiple strenuous days of exercise per week, the 'after' for one day is the 'before' for the next.

edenooch wrote: One would think that the best bet is to stay off their feet as much as possible.
And just rest alot. But i think this isnt always whats needed.

ok there are plenty of exercise and recovery regiments but let me just give you an example of mine. i've been doing about 5 days of exercise a week for years, and I haven't overtrained since I learned how to 'recover'.

day 1: full body weightlifting /circuit, ~ 1200 kcal burned;

after workout, lots of carbohydrates initially, building in more protein several hours after. later in the day i eat what i want (chips, ice cream, chocolate ) always drinking water to keep hydrated

day 2: intense cardio, ~ 1600 kcal - similar recovery
day 3: rest. i bicycle to school which is very low intensity but nice

day 4: like day 1
day 5: like day2

if i'm doing a really tough hike (7000+ ft), I'll try to eat more carbs on day 5 to make a full recovery for day 6

day 6: hike
day 7: rest

you need some protein for sure, but for endurance performance its more about carbs.


actually other body recovery processes improve when you have better replenished glycogen stores.

now it's actually harder to replenish after a hike than a 1-2 hr intense cardio session, because you are waiting much longer after the workout to start consuming the food. if you ate a huge pasta meal right after a hike, you might feel pretty good the next day.

keep in mind most soreness is DOMS which is due to eccentric contractions that do take some time to recover, but you could do some other exercise even if you do feel sore.

mon- Cardio strengh training 8 miler using 20lb weight vest.
tue- maybe 15-20 min jog
wed - pace training same route as mon but jogging and no weights
thurs - same as tues
fri - active rest day - carbo load/heavy water intake
Sat - THE BIG HIKE
Sun - sleep in and pig out that evening!

I vote for HikeUp.

edenooch wrote:I know what i do a day or two prior to a long, tough hike. Carb-load water hoard. blah blah blah...... But after the hike is more important i think.

If "carb load" just means eating a diet high in complex carbohydrates, an active person should do it all the time. I don't think the term has any other meaning any more. When I first learned about carbohydrate loading c. 1970, it referred to increasing stored glycogen beyond the usual limit. Basically, one goes through a depletion phase which runs stores to near zero, then a loading phase. If done right, the stored glycogen overshoots beyond what the body would usually store. The problem with this is fitting in depletion activity close to the main event for which one is loading in the first place. When marathoners and others do "carbo loading" these days, there is no depletion phase and, I believe, no loading beyond what ones ordinary diet provides. It's just a pasta party. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

I use a product called "Recoverite" after long hikes, I'm not a salesman so do your own research but it works for me.

Here's a review from a "bike and gear" website.

Hammer Nutrition is the manufacturer
Recoverite
Bicycling Review
Issue: Jun 2007
Editorial Review
If post-ride pain and fatigue are getting you down, Hammer Recoverite may be the miracle you are searching for

Let's face it, the older you get, the harder it is to recover from your strenuous workouts. In my case, it is my six and seven-hour days riding my DH rig on the knarly trails at northern New Jersey's Diablo Freeride Park. Recovery became a whole lot easier since I got hip to Hammer Recoverite drink mix from my good buddy Jay-a super-fast, A-class motorcycle enduro racer. The Recoverite is a pleasant tasting post-ride drink mix that refuels your body with the needed 3:1 ratio of complex carbohydrates, high quality whey protein isolate and three grams of all-important glutamine.

Another great thing about Recoverite is it contains no artificial flavorings or added sweeteners. I could bore you all day about the total gist of what is and what is not in Recoverite and which items do what, but forget that. The bottom line for me and is that before trying this product my rides the day after a strenuous Diablo day were non-existent because I was too sore. Post Recoverite, I can now manage a nice XC ride or run post - Diablo.

I have it ready to go in the car when I get back from the hike, 9 times out of 10 it makes the day after that much easier. I even hit the gym hard the next day after consuming this product.

Just another school of thought - google it and see what you find.

A decent Beer ... and those Nachos at the Baldy Lodge!
8)

What? Like you people haven't heard of In-N-Out Burger?

A quart (or two) of orange juice. The effect 20 minutes later must feel like what an addict feels from injesting drugs; what a rush!

Other than that I just eat/drink normally. I also try to do some easy exercising that involves muscle groups not normally used for hiking: bicycle riding, swimming, or surfing the next few days to keep the blood moving a little faster than 'sloth'. It seems to help if you keep moving and exercise the muscles a little bit.

Lots of skim milk (and a beer or two)

Shirley Temples whenever available.

i prefer a greygoose with cranberry on the rocks myself.............. had a margarita recently while it was good just not my taste!

edenooch wrote:i prefer a greygoose with cranberry on the rocks myself

That's a cosmopolitan!

All this booze is for post hike celebration and not recovery!

Gonna have to agree with Jim here. Coming down towards the 57/210 interchange and stopping at In N Out after a good long hike is all the recovery one needs

Funyan005 wrote:Gonna have to agree with Jim here. Coming down towards the 57/210 interchange and stopping at In N Out after a good long hike is all the recovery one needs

that's definitely my 'go to' post hike meal

On a slightly more serious note, an RD that I know recommended chocolate milk post-hike. I imagine the sugar gives you carbs, and of course you're rehydrating. Not sure how much protein is in milk, but perhaps some of that too.

Sure tastes better than some sports drinks.

Orange Juice, dudes. The best recovery drink. Simple sugars and some protein from the pulp. I like to slam down a quart after a hike.

And what this crap about In-N-Out? That's sooo passe! If I'm crusin' along the 210, I'm stopping at 'The Hat':

http://www.thehat.com/

(make sure your computer's sound is on )

phydeux wrote:Orange Juice, dudes. The best recovery drink. Simple sugars and some protein from the pulp. I like to slam down a quart after a hike.

And what this crap about In-N-Out? That's sooo passe! If I'm crusin' along the 210, I'm stopping at 'The Hat':

http://www.thehat.com/

(make sure your computer's sound is on )

Can you down an antire order of chili cheese fries in one sitting?
If yes your your arteries need recovery!

Zé wrote:

Funyan005 wrote:Gonna have to agree with Jim here. Coming down towards the 57/210 interchange and stopping at In N Out after a good long hike is all the recovery one needs

that's definitely my 'go to' post hike meal

At In-N-Out, after a strenuous hike, first I have to climb out of my car (with stiff muscles, it hurts), then ascend the steep Class 4 UPHILL slope on the In-N-Out handicap ramp.

Fortunately, my post-hike aroma assures me and my hiking friends of a table every time.

Animal fries!

. . . Rob