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Doing the workout is the only thing that matters, right?
Well, as much as I would love to tell you that was the case, I’m going to tell you why doing that workout is only half the story.
Oh, and yes, these all come from personal experience, so I’m sitting here smugly as I tell you the top 6 things you should avoid post-workout.
- Sit.
You finish that workout, your endorphins are buzzing, and you feel amazing!
The next 20 minutes sitting there in your sweaty gym attire, not doing anything, is the perfect time for skin irritation, and once you’ve cooled down, you are prob going to struggle to warm up again.
As tempting as it is, build a good post-workout routine that includes getting in that shower as quickly as possible and then you can enjoy your chill time and do all the metric analysis you want.
2. Leave your equipment uncleaned.
That previous point about getting in the shower as fast as possible probably needs a caveat, as one job you need to do is clean down your machine.
I know wiping sweat off your machine is one of the last things you want to be doing post-workout, but if you leave it until later, chances are it’s not going to get done.
A quick wipe-down of the rower and all its major components is a 2 to 3-minute job, and if you want to race Shane at it, here’s him doing his due diligence.
- Drink Alcohol.
As the summer months start to approach and you get those workouts done later on in the evening, it can be really tempting to unwind with a nice alcoholic beverage as a reward for all your hard work.
Heck, there are times I’ve trained thinking about that drink I’m earning as pure motivation!!
Truthfully the best post-workout drinks are ones that aid with rehydrating and recovery, so as tempting as a nice glass of red or pint of Guinness is; you’re better off getting an electrolyte drink or protein shake in first.
As a good rule of thumb, drink 16 oz of water first and see if you are just thirsty. Learning to listen to what your body is telling you is a great starting point for retraining habits.
4. Do grocery shopping.
I get it, we all have to get our workouts in when time permits, and sometimes that’s right before you have to get the weekly grocery shop.
For me, it’s those almond croissants in the bakery section (man, those are irresistible!), but whatever the temptation, shopping in a hungry state is something you really need to try and avoid.
Good habits will help you here, so prepare a post-workout shake or meal to avoid succumbing to those cravings, and give yourself 30 minutes before hitting the grocery store.
5. Social media uploads.
We all know how important a timely social post is; those post-workout sweat angels aren’t going to upload themselves, right?
It’s really easy to press stop on your monitor, take pictures of the screen and start the process.
I mean, you, of course, have to upload to Strava or your tracking app, curate a kick-ass title so the world knows how awesome and creative you are, and then also add them to Instagram, where you will start looking at other people’s posts and before you know it you have spent an hour sat in your sweaty gym clothes back where we started in point 1 – sitting.
6. Scheduling appointments.
As athletes or busy people in general, it’s easy to have to squeeze in as many things to your day as you can, and I know that some meetings you just can’t avoid.
I’m 100% guilty of, on more than one occasion, trying to schedule appointments either on Zoom or in a coffee shop in person immediately post-workout.
The problem here is you probably aren’t in the right state mentally or physically to be present in those meetings, and your productivity is going to be limited.
Plus, let’s be honest if you’ve just cycled to the local coffee shop in full lycra, you are going to get some funny looks as you enjoy your coffee (I did this one recently – sorry to all those who were sat near me!).
Enjoy your next workout and take our advice if you like; equally, feel free to completely ignore it and cycle 20 miles to meet your friends, make sweat marks on the furniture and make sure to stop off for those beers in the grocery store on the way home.
Why not!?
I’m joking, I promise!