Muscle Recovery and Joint Recovery

Glenn Pendlay has said that if you think you are overtrained, you're probably not getting enough sleep and/or food. Sometimes your body is beat up, and injuries are on the horizon, yet still avoidable if the right precautions are taken. Mobility work seems to be a rather new concept in lifting. I was once under the impression and obsession with the idea that if you trained a muscle more than once within 48 hours, you wouldn't get your gains. Not all muscles are the same size, and muscles can be either slow-twitch or fast-twitch, so there are many variables.

When I was Deadlifting very heavy, I knew that I had to take many rest days to recover my Lower Back and that if I had just stopped Deadlifting, I'd be able to train other exercises more frequently. I held onto this idea and just kept it in my head far too long. At points I realized that I had been doing exercises on days back-to-back that used the same muscles, and it was working as far as strength and muscle gains. High frequency drills technique into you. Weight lifting is about technique and leverage. All the strength in the world misguided is for naught. Before I got into lifting, there would be times I felt or even commanded myself to harness and radiate energy, yet I didn't know what to do with this energy. I could punch walls, jump into walls, or some form of injuring myself, and flooding my mind with psychosis. Actually, it was a good source of intuition for writing creatively.

My current routine for transforming from a Mummy to an agile Werewolf is a series of mobility tools.

• The Stick
• Useful  for Calves and Quads mostly.
• Foam Roller
• The number one tool for recovery. Rolling out your lower back will get you lifting heavier quicker.
• Every major muscle can be rolled.
• Most active recovery tool. It can be considered ground work, and will build strength, endurance, and joint strength.
• Rolls out muscle knots, soft tissue, and helps ligaments and joints recover faster.
• Excellent for the hip muscles.
• Theracane
• Specifically designed for Trap relief. You can dig in very deep.
• Useful for Traps, Posterior Delts, Anterior Delts, Pecs, Glutes, Lats, Teres Major, Triceps, and Biceps.
• You can hit every inch of the Pecs, which is unlike any of the other tools.
• Voodoo Flossing
• Instant and lasting joint relief in any limb.
• Useful for Knees, Ankles, Wrists, and Elbows.
• A sense of power and stability comes from its use.
• Stretch-Out Straps
• Useful for Shoulders in all ranges of movements, Triceps, and Lats.
• Builds Grip strength.
• Good way to stretch your Pecs and Anterior Delts.
• Yoga
• Flexibility and Mobility.

Using all of these techniques or even some is night and day between neglecting them. For hand care, I love to hold and squeeze ice cubes, and to apply Bag Balm throughout the day. If any part of your hands gets very raw, tape it every workout. Lastly, water should always be within arms-reach. I really believe in eating several pieces of fruit a day as well. They bring me focus, clarity, nutrition, energy, and they help digestion.