Marathon Runner: Muscle Recovery
Marathon runners indulge in physical exertion that can leave them with tight calf muscles, muscle cramps, muscle stiffness, and muscle spasms. Naturally, these problems then interfere with their performance. As athletes, they have to run for extended time periods, which requires their body to be in shape.
Since it is impossible for a marathon runner to avoid encountering muscle pain once in a while, they need ways to enhance pain management and promote faster muscle recovery.
How Marathon Runners Optimize Performance
In athletic training, optimizing performance is imperative. This also involves improving and speeding up the road to muscle recovery. For this reason, non-invasive ways are always explored and welcomed. In light of this, Far Infrared (FIR) Light Therapy is a useful mechanism.
In order to operate at their optimum level, athletes need to maximize the effectiveness of their body’s natural healing process. Pain recovery and performance go hand in hand, which is why FIR therapy plays an integral role in the lives of marathon runners. Apart from practice and training, these athletes also need to relax their muscles, practice stress relief, get rid of muscle stiffness and promote healing in case of any muscle sprain or injury. Otherwise, this would just hamper their performance.
Between workouts, marathon runners need to give their muscles time to replenish and recover from tissue damage. It is also essential for them to get rid of acute soreness and inflammation. Without all these aspects combined, a marathon runner or athlete will fail to peak their physical performance.
How Does Infrared Light Therapy Help?
Now that we know the importance of recovery for marathon runners, how do they get access to this? Infrared light therapy is a useful tool. With several latest models in the market, athletes can just sit up or lie down in the heated enclosure to unwind and relax their muscles alongside. Here’s how it works.
Improves Blood Flow
Whether you have muscle injury or inflammation, you need proper circulation to heal faster. The heating effect of infrared is able to deeply penetrate the skin, allowing for vasodilation. This improves blood circulation to the muscles. Red blood cells carry oxygen to the damaged site, promoting creation of new blood vessels that help to form new tissue, expediting the healing process.
Promotes Cellular Function
Infrared light contains different wavelengths that have an impact on the body’s cellular function. It helps improve cellular energy synthesis that in turn helps restore the balance of stressed tissues and cells. This is able to catalyze the healing process and cater to wounds more effectively. Marathon runners can use Infrared light therapy for instant pain relief. They can just sit back and relax in the sauna before or after exercise. The former helps support muscle function before running while the latter helps to relax the sauna users and relieve muscle soreness and stiffness.
