Practising sport regularly is one of the basic rules for a healthy lifestyle. In fact, the benefits of sporting activities do not only concern staying in shape, but are also tangible aids for both the body and mind, as stress and tensions are literally dissolved when the body is in motion.

But subjecting the body to more or less intensive physical effort, we must take a few precautions to avoid injuries and to ensure that the body can recover energy levels quickly, restoring normal physiological well-being.

Techniques for recovering energy after sporting activities

Warm-ups: recovering energy after sporting activities starts sooner than we might think. Never underestimate the importance of warm-ups, needed to increase the body temperature, preparing the muscles and ensuring elasticity during sports, to avoid strains and sprains.

Cool-downs: like warm-ups, after sporting activities we must ensure a cool down period, with a series of activities to relax the muscles, along with exercises that help to stretch the tissues and dispose of the lactic acid.

Have a snack: within 30 minutes after the end of sporting activities, it is a good habit to ensure sufficient rehydration, and a snack rich in carbohydrates, vitamins, mineral salts and fibre.

The importance of proteins: people who practise sports regularly must ensure that their diet includes proteins, as these provide the essential amino acids that maintain healthy muscles and cardiovascular system.

Cereals: nuts, cocoa and whole wheat cereals help to restore spent energy, and contain micronutrients that fight the oxidation triggered during sporting activities.

Physical and mental relaxation: meditation, yoga, low-impact exercises or a short walk to relax the mind: these common mental relaxation techniques also have positive effects on the body.

Regular night-time rest: the health of the whole body depends on both the amount and quality of sleep.  If there is a balanced sleep-wake rhythm, there is a greater chance of having more energy when you wake up.

Supplements for recovering energy: ApportAL® contains vitamins and mineral salts that promote normal muscle function and help recover energy, strength and tone after sporting activities. This is thanks to its formulation with 19 nutrients, including:

Selenium: an essential substance for supporting skeletal muscle health and functioning.

Magnesium: indispensable for the body for producing energy, helping to guarantee muscle contraction and heart beat.

Arginine: arginine improves the blood flow and muscle efficiency, also supporting muscle recover both after sports and in the event of prolonged inactivity.

Carnitine: it is useful for facilitating muscle recovery and repair after intensive efforts and activities. It also helps the body to fight fatigue.

Physical activity plays a fundamental role in a healthy lifestyle, and the same goes for subsequent physical recovery.

But who has never had painful muscles and a general feeling of numbness after intensive sports training?

After particularly intensive training, it is normal to have numb, tired muscles: this is the way the body tells us we need to rest. You should have a break of 24/48 hours to allow the body to recover tone and energy and repair the fibres responsible for unpleasant muscle pain.

Why is post-training physical recovery so important? Because the body has to rest to remain efficient. Furthermore, muscle recovery is required to make progress at sporting level, develop muscle mass and burn excess fat.

Physical recovery starts immediately after sport and on the days between training sessions. In this phase, the body begins the process of regeneration of the structures that have been stressed by intense stimuli, and works to return to pre-training conditions.

Exaggerating with sporting activities without giving the body the time it needs to regenerate, increases the risk of injuries and suffering more frequently from muscle pain, cramps and overexertion.

Vitamins and minerals useful for muscle recovery

A healthy diet is even more important during constant sporting activities, because the body needs some nutrients that support muscle activity.

Some of these fundamental nutrients for muscle well-being are:

• Zinc
• Magnesium
• Vitamin B6
• Carnitine
• Arginine

Furthermore, vitamin C and iron also help muscle recovery, reduce tiredness and fatigue, while vitamin E helps to protect the cells from the free radicals generated by the body as a reaction to intensive physical effort.

Supplements for post-training physical recovery

The charge of endorphins we get after a training session is certainly gratifying, and it almost seems that the key to bodily well-being is exactly that. However, health also needs an appropriate intake of nutrients to make recovery after sports training even more effective.

Correct training must include an adequate intake of vitamins and minerals, as this significantly affects athletic performance and productivity in everyday life.

Apportal® products are nutritional supplements that support the body in both full muscle recovery and in topping up the energy charge, in order to be ready for a new training session.

The muscle function of Apportal® is particularly promoted by:

• Selenium: fundamental support for good muscle and skeletal functioning and to fight physical and mental weakness.

• Zinc: improved sporting performance, thanks to its ability to repair and regenerate the tissues, as well as stimulate muscle recovery.

• Magnesium: correct muscle performance, controlling muscle contractions and heart beat.

• Arginine: improved muscle efficiency, promoting rapid recovery after sporting performance.

• Carnitine: useful for facilitating muscle recovery and muscle tissue repair, fighting the feeling of tiredness and fatigue.

Sporting activities, practised both inside and outdoors, in the summer or winter, make the human body lose a large amount of water and mineral salts. Physical well-being, especially for people who regularly practise sports, necessarily requires the correct hydration of the body, one of the basic principles of physical well-being along with a healthy, balanced diet.

After physical activity, the body needs to restore both a good amount of liquids and vitamins and minerals. Minerals are so-called essential micro-nutrients because they cannot be synthesised by the body and can therefore only be taken in with food. This is why doctors and nutritionists insist greatly on the importance of a diet that includes fruit, vegetables and the right amount of proteins and carbohydrates.

The 22 minerals in the body are indispensable for many physiological functions, including carrying oxygen to the cells, blood coagulation and muscle function.

The most important in the sports field are iron, zinc, magnesium, calcium and selenium, while the vitamins to be integrated after physical activity are vitamin D, group B vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin A and vitamin E, all of which have antioxidant properties.

Nutritional supplements suited to integrating vitamins and minerals after physical activity

Generally, people who practise sports constantly should have a varied diet based on the principles of the Mediterranean diet: the basic foodstuffs include fruit, vegetables, carbohydrates (bread, pasta, rice, spelt, potatoes) and pulses (beans, chick peas, lentils). The noble proteins, found in fish and eggs, as well as meat, should not be eaten more than twice a week. A balanced diet also includes milk, yoghurt, dairy products and cheeses, as well as raw extra-virgin olive oil as a condiment.

When the diet is insufficient to meet the body’s needs after sporting activities, the supplements in the ApportAL® range contain vitamins and minerals that help the body to recover after physical activity, intervening in the muscle function to reduce the feeling of fatigue.

This is thanks to the complete formulation that contains 19 nutrients that help to recover energy. Fundamental for sports people:

• Selenium: essential antioxidant for correct muscle function.
• Magnesium: useful for guaranteeing correct muscle performance and indispensable for the production of energy.
• Arginine: improves muscle efficiency, helping to dilate the blood vessels.
• Carnitine: facilitates muscle recovery and fights fatigue.