A common question I get from my patients is, “What can I do to speed up my recovery and healing?” What they’re usually looking for is a specific exercise, stretch, tool, etc. that they can do/use for their injury.
What I tell them is that while there are some specific things I can recommend, they won’t do much good if the fundamentals of healing & recovery aren’t being worked on. If you’re not putting your body in the best place for healing, then the specifics I tell you won’t be as effective as they could be.
Working on improving these fundamental areas, in and of themselves, will help speed up your healing and recovery.
So here are the 5 pillars of optimal recovery and healing that I discuss with my patients:
1. Sleep
A good night’s sleep is incredibly important for your physical and mental health. Yet, sleep is often neglected and overlooked by not only the general public, but also by many medical professionals.
Sleep should be considered just as important to health as a healthy diet and exercise. I’ve heard sleep described as the best, legal performance-enhancing drug (PED) out there.
Here are a few important points/stats on sleep: Is all this data from CDC?
- 7-9 hours of sleep is recommended for adults
- <7 is considered short sleep duration
- 35% of Americans get < 7 hours of sleep a night (as per CDC)
- 8-10 hours of sleep is recommended for teenagers
- Actual average for teenagers in the U.S. is 6.5 hours (according to 2015 study from Journal of Youth & Adolescence)
- People with short sleep duration (aka poor sleepers):
- Are more likely to be obese
- Have greater risk for cardiovascular disease, stroke & type 2 diabetes
- Have higher rates of depression
- Have more inflammation in their body
- Consistent, quality sleep is so important that the CDC has actually classified shift work as a probable carcinogen
- If you want to read some more stats, check out 54 Shocking Sleep Statistics
Now with regards to healing and recovery, during sleep is when your body tries to repair and restore itself. When you sleep, the brain is triggered to release hormones that promote healing.
Two of the commonly discussed hormones are human growth hormone (HGH) and prolactin – both of which increase production during deep sleep. HGH helps promote the healing of muscles and tissues. And prolactin helps regulate inflammation in the body.
Simply put, if you’re not getting adequate sleep, then your body won’t be able to heal as quickly.
And I realize that if you are in pain, getting a good night’s sleep might be difficult to do. That’s why I highly recommend working with one of our physical therapists who can help you figure out how to sleep better.
So if you want to be healthier, perform better and/or help your body heal & recover, then you absolutely need consistent, quality sleep.
2. Hydration
Some people would put hydration with nutrition but I wanted to list it separately so you understand the importance of it. And because most people live in a mildly dehydrated state.
When dealing with an injury, keeping your body in a properly hydrated state is an essential part of the healing process. In a dehydrated state, your body will pull water away from less important areas (think skin, ligaments, tendons, muscles, etc) to protect your vital organs.
Water also helps breakdown food and transfer nutrients into cells, thereby improving the rate and effectiveness of healing and recovery.
You’re probably wondering what the recommended amount of daily water intake is. It’s recommended to drink at least half your body weight in ounces. And I can bet that most of you aren’t drinking that much.
To put it simply, keep yourself hydrated if you want your body to be in an optimal state for healing and recovery.
3. Nutrition
With regards to healing and recovery, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that poor nutritional habits aren’t good for healing.
If you eat a lot of sugary and processed foods, then your body is likely in a state of chronic low-level inflammation (think cellular level, not whole body swelling up). When your body is in an inflammatory state, it has to spend energy and resources on calming that down – rather than trying to heal your injury. This underlying low-level inflammation will make any injury that much worse.
So if you want to promote healing and recover faster, then eat healthier…duh! This doesn’t mean you have to eat super clean and go on some crazy diet. Just clean up your eating habits and what you’re eating and that will help your body recover faster.
A simple guideline I tell patients (and myself), is to stick to outside aisles of the supermarket – where the fruits, vegetables, meat, whole grains, etc are. Trying to avoid the middle of the supermarket as much as possible – where most of the processed and sugary foods are.
And just like most other things, consistency is key when it comes to nutrition.
4. Stress
Stress is a well-known risk factor for developing chronic musculoskeletal pain.
When you are stressed, especially chronic stress, your body increases its production of a hormone called cortisol. While low levels of cortisol can be beneficial for dealing with a temporary stressful situation, an overabundance of cortisol can have a negative effect on inflammation and delay healing.
Being emotionally stressed also puts you in a mental state/mood that is not conducive to healing. If you’re stressed, you probably won’t feel like putting in any extra effort to things like exercising, eating well, socializing, etc. – things that can all have a positive effect on healing and recovery.
To summarize the vast amount of research out there, people who are frequently stressed (or anxious, angry, etc) are more likely to experience delayed healing of an injury.
5. Movement
Movement is medicine. That might sound silly to you, but it really is the truth. Movement brings blood flow and nutrients to your joints, muscles, and tendons. This thereby promotes recovery and healing, while also reducing swelling.
Movement really is that beneficial to your body, while not moving can be incredibly detrimental.
And don’t worry about picking a certain type of movement/exercise, the key is to regularly move throughout every day. Whether it be as simple as going for a walk or as energetic as a HIIT workout, just MOVE!