Recovery ❤️‍🩹

Recovery is a skill. The internet is filled with training advice; it has you covered for exercise selection, training types, and what have you. But because it's not considered tough enough to talk about recovery, it often gets shoved under the carpet. So, over the last few months, I've been experimenting a lot to improve recovery, and here are some of my observations. Some of these are gleaned from science and should apply to you, while others are personal and may not work for you. Treat this as a buffet, and consult a physician if needed.

Count macros rather than calories: Carbs are our body's preferred fuel. I realized that in my diet, I was getting way too many fats, which were coming at the expense of carbs as I was in caloric restriction. The simple switch (using the RP diet app, not sponsored) helped me instantly feel better.

Tracking HRV and resting heart rate: My mind is blown by how closely my subjective sense of fatigue is connected with my heart rate variability (HRV) and resting heart rate. I'll spare you the science, but the app I use to give me a nice summary is Athlytic (not sponsored). Of course, I have an Apple Watch that collects the data itself.

Magnesium, L-Theanine, Apigenin: This is the sleep cocktail recommended by Andrew Huberman. It helps my muscles relax. I take it right before sleep, and I can feel a noticeable difference the morning after.

Massage, Yoga: Really good for those hard leg workout days.

Cooling mattress: Your body temperature needs to drop by a degree or two for you to fall asleep. In this summer weather, having a mattress that cools me down helps me wake up with noticeably more energy.A combination of these has me feel better and given me more energy, at least to the point of writing this email up. I hope some of this is helpful for you as well. If you are interested in health, I recently released a podcast with NHS doctor Sanchit Turaga; have a listen.