How Long Should You Cooldown For?
How Long Should You Cooldown?
Don’t overlook your cooldown! Taking time after a hard run to properly cool down is especially important. You will maximize the benefits of your run by giving your body a chance to gradually recover. Recovering from your run, preparing for your next one, and staying healthy in between all start with an active cooldown process.
In this post we’ll look at how to cool down after a run, and some of the other considerations you need when it comes to fighting the urge to go straight from the treadmill to the couch.
1. Why Cooldown at All?
There are three main reasons to actively cool down after a hard run. First, you need to give your circulatory system a chance to bounce back to a resting level without a shock. When you’ve been running, especially if it was a hard or long training run, your body will have been pumping and circulating blood a lot faster than it normally does. If you stop abruptly, all kinds of small issues can happen that build up into potential problems.
Second, it is always a good idea to let your mind and your body process the workout. If you had specific goals to achieve or have been working hard toward improving your pace, once you’ve stopped the workout you need a transition period before calling it complete. This can help avoid cramping as well as any other effects that can occur.
Third, a proper cooldown helps keep your muscles loose. This will help you recover from the run easier and will also keep you healthier during your full rest and recovery period up until your next run. Without a cooldown, you run the risk of your muscles tightening up as soon as you stop.
2. How Long Should Your Cooldown be?
The easy answer to how long your cooldown should be is 3-5 minutes. You only need a few minutes after a hard workout to cool down, and this is generally accepted as the rule.
The more complicated answer is that you should let your heart rate be your guide. If you have access to a heart rate monitor on your treadmill, you can look at what your heart rate was during the heaviest parts of your workout, and then you can transition to an easy walk to cool down. Once your heart rate drops to a more sustainable level per your age and body type, you can stop the cool down.
3. How to Cooldown
Cooling down is surprisingly easy! There’s no strict regimen you have to follow, and no one type of exercise or movement is better than any other.
The important thing is that you don’t go from an elevated heart rate to a resting heart rate with nothing in between. If you were running, just change to walking for a few minutes. Gradually decrease the speed until you can feel your breath and your heart rate have adjusted. You can also try going through an active stretching routine or a mindful cooldown in a short yoga sequence to get you there.