Recovery has become an increasingly popular buzzword in the world of sport, and has made the jump from a noun to a verb and blossomed into a massive industry. From supplements to ice baths to compression boots to various torture device looking contraptions, there’s no shortage of money to be spent on “enhancing” our performance. But what actually works? What does the science actually show? My guest today is Christie Aschwanden, a science writer, journalist, avid endurance athlete, and author of the book Good to Go: What the Athlete in All of Us Can Learn From the Strange Science of Recovery. Christie set out to answer these questions, and eloquently and effectively dives into the fray to search for truth in the world of recovery by trying many of these things, digging into the research, and talking to experts in the field.
We talk about the big picture side of recovery. How so many times athletes miss the forest for the trees and don’t prioritize the boring, simple, and most evidence-based fundamentals and instead focus on the latest shiny gadget that their favorite pro athlete/influencer is promoting on social media. We discuss gaining that calm confidence in training hard and developing a lifestyle that is conducive to adaptation and performance, and how we can stay in our lane and be insulated from the claims of recovery marketing. For more on Christie, check out her website www.christieaschwanden.com and follow her on Twitter @cragcrest.