To become stronger, faster, and fitter, everybody says that we have to push our bodies harder and make an effort, and although it is very true, nobody takes the proper time to talk about REST.

As fundamental as exercise is, resting allows our bodies to recover and become stronger. If you’re someone like me who loves to workout, but suffers from muscle pain and inflammation, continue reading because you will find some awesome solutions.

Did you know that all workouts, especially tough ones, stress our bodies? We’re tiring out many muscles when we work out, which means we’re causing microscopic damage to our muscle cells, and that is the whole point of exercise.

The changes we’re causing can do our bodies a lot of good. They lead to muscle growth and overall healthier bodies, but we need to give our bodies time for those good changes to happen before we start “stressing them out” again. That’s what Recovery stands for, helping our bodies rebuild the tissues we break when we work out.

There’s more than one way to let our muscles recover

Workout recovery doesn’t just mean lying on the couch and putting our feet up (although that does sound like a great idea!). Let me share some of my post-workout recovery strategies that help my muscles heal, and I’m hoping they can do the same for you! Here are some of those strategies:

• Passive Recovery: A complete stop from exercise, and complete rest. Okay, I lied, we can lie on the couch and put our feet up for this one.

• Cooling down and stretching: One easy but much-overlooked muscle recovery tool is stretching. Cooldown exercises (such as stretches) can help to speed up our bodies recovery post-workout. Stretching our muscles correctly while they're still warm also reduces our chance of cramps and stiffness, and limits the strain on our joints and muscles. I bet you’re busy so I highly recommend you try this 5-minute cool-down and stretch video to get things rolling.

• Active Recovery: Low-intensity and low-impact exercise can promote our blood flow.

“Try a gentle yoga practice to stretch out tired muscles. Think of active recovery as anything you can do without getting winded or fatiguing your muscles.” says Nicole Belkin, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at NewYork-Presbyterian at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City.

Give this 10-minute yoga video a try, it sure helped me when I needed to wind down. 

• Sleep: During sleep, our bodies produce the majority of their growth factors that support daily muscle repair and recovery. I highly recommend getting seven to nine hours of sleep per night so you get those growth factors to do their work.

 

• Hydration: Vital for muscle recovery. After exercise, the goal is to fully replenish any fluid and electrolytes lost from our workout. Electrolytes, important for muscle health and muscle repair, are lost when we sweat. To speed recovery post-work, the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends drinking 23 fluid ounces of water per pound of body weight lost during exercise. Be sure to weigh yourself directly before and directly after your workout to know how much you need to drink.

 

• Nutritional Recovery: “The foods you eat provide your body with the “building blocks” needed to repair muscles and promote recovery”, explains Chris Kolba, PhD, a physical therapist at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus.

A whole-foods-based diet rich in antioxidants, whole carbohydrates, and lean protein can help trigger the right changes in our bodies between workouts, so our system is in better shape for the next workout.

Research suggests that eating approximately 0.4 - 0.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight, pre, and post-workout, is the proper amount to maximize muscle growth. It’s also recommended to eat a total of 0.9 to 1.1 grams of protein daily.

• Moringa as a superfood: One of nature's most nourishing plants on the planet (no joke). The Moringa Protein is the key factor, in great part because this plant-based protein can help us recover after physical activity, it’s a great refuel if we want to get our bodies back on track, feeling much better in the process. 

 

So this is clearly where we dive into nutrition and introduce you to your next daily companion for even better results!

Although we can apply many of these strategies, I would like to place a special emphasis on our nutrition and how 1 small change can make significant changes in our lives. After all, it is very true that "we are what we eat". Ok, moving on, moringa as a superfood? why?

Have you heard about Moringa? (besides what you read above)

Moringa Oleifera is the newest “miracle superfood” that every health enthusiast is talking about. If you haven’t heard about Moringa by now, well here is your opportunity to be pleasantly mystified.

Moringa, also known as the drumstick tree, is a nutrient-rich tree, indigenous to Sub-Himalayan regions of India where its fruit and leaves have been used for centuries for its high nutritional profile and healing benefits.

"Scientifically speaking, Moringa sounds like magic. It can rebuild weak bones, enrich anemic blood and enable a malnourished mother to nurse her starving baby. Ounce for ounce, it has the calcium of four glasses of milk, the Vitamin C of seven oranges and the potassium of three bananas”.

If you’re an athlete, yoga enthusiast, swimmer, football player, or just someone looking to boost your overall health (like me), this miraculous tree has a lot of benefits to offer that no other nutritional companion can give you.

Read on to find out how moringa can help improve your health, fitness and wellness goals, just like it does for me.

1. Moringa can help speed up our recovery

 

When we work out, our muscles drain themselves of essential nutrients such as protein, vitamins, and minerals. Working out can cause micro-tears to the muscles, this happens so the blood flow to the muscles can increase. These micro-tears can lead to post work out soreness for several days.

“The damage that exercise can cause, triggers your body’s immune system to repair that damage”, explains Adam Rivadeneyra, MD, a sports medicine physician with the Hoag Orthopedic Institute and the Orthopaedic Specialty Institute in Orange, California.

Don’t worry, the soreness is just our muscles adjusting to new intensities of working out. When they repair, they grow stronger. Good nutrition is essential for muscle recovery, and moringa can help speed up this process. 

 2. Moringa for athletes can boost muscle growth

Moringa can help recover from a workout and boost muscle growth. The moringa plant contains a complete profile of plant proteins, called amino acids, and it contains calcium which is crucial for muscle growth. 

 

That is why more and more athletes include this type of plant-based protein source in their day-to-day. Note that if you are vegan, there is no better way to adjust your protein daily intake than with this superfood.

3. Great Source of Fibre, and high in iron

Another of the multiple moringa benefits is its high fiber content. This is great for our digestive system and overall gut health. A healthy gut means a healthy immune system, and we need a strong immune system to perform at our best. 

Iron is important for the red blood cells and transporting oxygen around your body. When you participate in sports or intense physical activity, you need your red blood cells to be in good health to deliver oxygen to your muscles, organs, and other tissues. 

Moringa’s high iron content is perfect for maintaining our healthy levels of hemoglobin in the red blood cells.

4. Moringa is an Antioxidant 

The oxidative stress we put on our bodies when performing an intense exercise can take its toll. Since Moringa is a superfood, it’s high in antioxidant compounds, meaning it can help our bodies fight any stress placed much more effectively. 

In other words, it helps protect our cells from the damage incurred by molecules called free radicals, these are produced by the body when exposed to environmental toxins like pesticides and cigarette smoke. Moringa, and most notably its leaves, are rich in a number of beneficial compounds which provide antioxidant protection.

 
5. Add Moringa to your Diet

Moringa is perfect to boost a whole range of nutrients. From reducing fatigue to boosting our immune system, this powerhouse of nutrients in this magic plant can significantly benefit our overall performance. 

It is so simple and easy to incorporate into our daily meals, to be honest, it’s almost a crime not to! There is a world of moringa recipes waiting for you, we just happen to have our top 5 recipes that will want to make you kickstart, and here are some easy ways to use it:

• Add moringa to warm water, pour some honey and make your own delicious herbal tea.
• Make some cold moringa tea and mix coconut sugar to replace sports drinks.
• Blend moringa powder with your healthy morning smoothies to make them even better.
• Toss a spoonful of moringa powder in your salads, soups, and stews.
• Add a teaspoon of Moringa to your oatmeal.

Try our Moringa Protein Blend here or continue to learn more about it.

 

6. Great ingredients that our Moringa Protein Blend contains

• Organic Moringa Powder: proven to contain the highest nutrient-rich content of any superfood plant in the world.

• Organic Pumpkin Seed Powder: source of plant-based protein.

• Organic Cacao Powder: high in protein, calcium, and iron, giving you that much need energy boost.

• Organic Hemp Protein Powder: Rich in plant protein, making it an ideal ingredient for post-workout recovery.

Keep in mind that our OMG Moringa protein blend can provide a helpful serving of protein and veggies all rolled into one, getting all the goodness into you.

Moringa’s numerous benefits classify it as an essential superfood. Its positive impact on our immune system's efficiency as well as its antioxidant properties make it super recommended for us.

 

Isn’t it time to start experiencing moringa’s wonderful advantages? If you haven’t tried it already, get yourself your first tube now and there’s no turning back from it.

 

Jumpstart your healthy lifestyle with Moringa and muscle recovery methods every day. Listen to your body and remember that your ideal workout recovery strategy will flow over weeks, months, and years. There you go, we will have built a great healthy new habit!

Hope this overview of the recovery process has been helpful. If you have any questions remember you can always get in touch with us through our social media channels, @instagram, @pinterest, @facebook or send us an email at hello@omgsupefoods.com- 

Have a great week!