International Self-Care Day
International Self-Care Day, recognized each year on July 24, is a global reminder of the importance of daily habits, including self-care, that promote long-term health and well-being.
Help your clients push beyond their limits with intentional post workout recovery and self-care so they can:
- Enhance performance
- Prevent injury
- Support mental well-being
On this International Self-Care Day, we’re challenging you to consider how your training plans support self-care and post workout recovery.
Here are some strategies to strengthen your post workout recovery program and promote self-care.
Sleep
Sleeping well is more than just “feeling rested”; it is an active biological process that drives adaptation. Without quality sleep, recovery is incomplete, and performance suffers.
Sleep benefits active post workout recovery in many ways:
Muscle and tissue repair. During sleep (especially deep sleep), the body shifts into a restorative state where it prioritizes repair and recovery. This is when protein synthesis (the biological process in which cells create proteins) increases, allowing damaged muscle fibers to rebuild stronger.
Hormone regulation. From growth to stress, sleep maintains adequate levels and improves hormone regulation and functioning.
Hormone Regulation During Sleep
- Growth hormones stimulate tissue growth and repair, support fat metabolism, and maintain healthy blood sugar levels.
- Cortisol, the stress hormone, naturally decreases during sleep; however, poor or lack of sleep can keep cortisol levels elevated, increasing muscle breakdown, impairing recovery, and possibly contributing to fat storage.
- Testosterone, for both men and women, spikes during sleep and is critical for muscle repair, energy, motivation, and supporting lean body mass.
- Healthy sleep supports insulin sensitivity, while chronic sleep deprivation leads to insulin resistance and makes body composition goals harder to achieve.
Cognitive function. Sleep doesn’t just repair the body physically; it resets your brain. During REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, your brain combines memories, processes learning (including motor skills), and supports emotional regulation. Quality sleep also improves decision-making, reaction times, mood, stress management, and increases muscle post workout recovery.
Client Recommendations to Increase Sleep Quality
- Aim for 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night
- Avoid stimulants 3 to 6 hours before bed
- Create a screen-free wind-down routine
- Exercise regularly
- Manage stress
- Maintain a consistent sleep-wake cycle (circadian rhythm)
- Maximize brief afternoon naps (5 to 15 minutes)
- Use sleep trackers to check sleep quality
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Nutrition
Even if your clients aren’t tracking their micronutrients and macronutrients, food is a form of self-care and directly impacts recovery.
Here’s how food—specifically macronutrients —promote post workout recovery.
- Proteins promote muscle repair and recovery. After training, the body experiences microtears (tiny, microscopic tears or damage) in muscle fibers. Consuming protein provides the essential amino acids (molecules used to make protein) needed to stimulate muscle protein synthesis (repairing and strengthening fibers).
- Carbohydrates also play a crucial role in post workout recovery. Training depletes muscle glycogen stores. Replenishment through carbohydrate intake post-exercise is essential to restore energy levels, support recovery, and prepare for the next training session.
- Fats, while not directly tied to post workout recovery, are essential for hormone health and long-term recovery strategies.
Food also affects key hormones that promote post workout recovery and adaptation.
- Insulin: Triggered primarily by carbohydrate intake, insulin shuttles glucose and amino acids into muscle cells, where they fuel recovery and growth. Balanced insulin responses, in combination with training, improve glycogen (stored glucose) replenishment and muscle repair.
- Cortisol: Chronic under-fueling or poor dietary habits keep cortisol (stress hormone) levels elevated, increasing inflammation, slowing recovery, and impairing immune function. Adequate calorie and nutrient intake regulate cortisol levels.
- Leptin and Ghrelin: These hormones regulate hunger and satiety and are also tied to energy balance and recovery. Poor nutrition can dysregulate these signals, leading to under-eating, poor recovery, and disrupted performance.
Callout: Balance Insulin Response
Prioritize whole, unprocessed foods, particularly those high in fiber, healthy fats, and lean protein, while limiting refined carbohydrates and saturated fats. This balanced approach supports an effective insulin response and promotes stable blood sugar levels.
Nutrition serves as the foundation for your client’s health and the fuel for their performance—offering tremendous potential to positively impact their lives. Becoming a Nutrition Coach helps you develop a clear understanding of nutrition methodology, support, and coaching with empathy to create positive long-lasting changes.
Food Influences Inflammation
Acute inflammation post-workout is part of the normal repair process. Chronic inflammation from poor dietary choices (ultra-processed foods, inadequate micronutrients) can slow recovery and impact performance.
Reinforce the role of post workout recovery nutrition and performance with your clients.
- Consider supplements (with professional guidance): Magnesium and omega-3s support the body’s response to inflammation.
- Eat balanced meals: Consume protein and complex carbs within 60 minutes of training.
- Stay hydrated: Water supports nutrient transport and joint health.
Active Recovery Workouts
Active recovery workouts are low-intensity movements performed on rest days or after intense training sessions. Unlike complete rest, active recovery workouts keep the body moving and increase circulation. This process delivers oxygen and nutrients to tired muscles while promoting the removal of waste products like lactic acid.
Some clients may struggle with the idea of slowing down. However, remind them that active recovery workouts are a structured, intentional way to support their fitness goals—and a form of self-care. Over time, active recovery workouts improve movement quality, flexibility, and overall resilience—increasing training consistency and effectiveness.
Include a variety of active recovery workouts in your training plans.
- Dynamic stretching
- Light cardio (walking, cycling)
- Yoga or mobility flows
Active recovery workouts are about moving with intention, building mental resilience, and improving mobility to feel good every day. Consider these three foundation-building movements as you build your training plans:
1. Glute bridge: Lie on your back, knees bent, and feet hip-width apart. Engage your core muscles (midsection), squeeze your glutes, and lift your hips until your body forms a straight line from shoulders to knees. Hold for two seconds, then slowly lower it down. Avoid arching your lower back, lifting heels off the ground, or rushing. Control is key.
2. World’s greatest stretch: Step into a deep lunge with hands on the floor to frame your front foot. Lower your elbow toward the inside of your front foot to stretch the inner side (adductor magnus) of the front leg and muscles near your back hip (hip flexors). Rotate your upper body toward your front leg, extending your arm up—follow your arm with your eyes (thoracic and cervical spine). Then, place both hands on the floor and straighten your back leg to stretch the muscles at the back of your thigh (hamstrings and calves). Lift torso up and place your knees in a 90-degree position to stretch the hip flexors. Stand up and repeat. Avoid rushing, letting your front knee fall, or arching your back.
3. Modified side plank: Lie on your side, bottom knee bent at 90 degrees; elbow placed under your shoulder. Engage your core and lift your hips to form a straight line from head to heel. Hold for three to five seconds, then lower with control. Avoid letting your hips sag, arching your lower back, and extending your head forward.
Mind-Body Connection
The best post workout recovery plans also include the nervous system. Chronic mental and emotional stress keeps the body stuck in a heightened sympathetic state (fight or flight), making muscle recovery after workouts harder.
Additionally, elevated stress drives up cortisol, which impairs muscles, disrupts sleep, increases inflammation, and can mimic overtraining symptoms (decreased performance, persistent fatigue, and change in mood). In other words, what’s happening in your client’s mind shows up in their body and their performance.
Including mind-body post workout recovery strategies are an important part of self-care which also activates the parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest).
- Mindfulness or meditation moments
- Breathwork or guided relaxation
Callout: Mindful Stress Management is a self-paced course designed to help you handle everyday stress in a healthier, more sustainable way. Developed by NASM wellness experts, this course provides simple, science-backed tools you can put to use immediately.
Mindful stress management supports better physical post workout recovery, enhances sleep quality, improves mood regulation, and reduces injury risk.
While sleep, nutrition , and stress management form the foundations of post workout recovery, specific tools and techniques increase mobility and enhance the process.
- Foam rollers and other self-myofascial release tools (like massage balls and sticks) break up adhesions (scar tissue that can limit movement) in soft tissue, improve blood flow, and increase mobility—speeding post workout recovery and reducing soreness.
- Compression gear is another popular recovery tool, often used to improve circulation and decrease swelling post-exercise.
- Cold therapy (ice baths) and contrast baths (alternating hot and cold) are also widely used to manage inflammation, reduce delayed onset of muscle soreness (DOMS), and promote faster recovery between training sessions.
Callout: Cold therapy and contrast bath techniques stimulate blood flow, aid lymphatic drainage, and potentially reduce muscle fatigue. While individual responses may vary (and should be physician approved), recommending cold therapy and contrast baths into a broader post workout recovery strategy can help clients feel, move, and perform better over time.
Regardless of what tools and techniques you use in your post workout recovery, encourage clients to listen to their bodies and adjust accordingly—the ultimate form of self-care.
At its core, post workout recovery isn’t a pause from progress—it's a critical part of the training process. Without recovery, even the best training program will eventually hit a wall. As fitness professionals, embracing and promoting these habits isn’t just good practice—it's essential for sustainable, long-term results.
This International Self-Care Day, consider leading by example. Choose one recovery healthy habit to prioritize this week—whether it’s getting more sleep, programming an actual rest day, improving hydration, or finally embracing that foam roller. Small, intentional choices promote better health, performance, and a longer, more resilient fitness career.