Strength training helps you stay strong, mobile, and independent. But taking steps to enhance muscle recovery between workouts may be equally important.
Weaving strength training into your fitness routine is critical, especially as you age and start to lose muscle mass and strength. Strength training can help slow this loss. And it can help you rebuild muscle and strength you may have already lost.
But routine strength training is only part of the equation. Another vital part is supporting the recovery and repair of your muscles between training sessions. 
What is muscle recovery and why is it important?
When you work out, your muscles are stressed and get tiny, microscopic tears in them. Your body needs time to repair and rebuild these tiny tears. This is muscle recovery in action. And it’s a normal process by which you build muscle mass and strength. It’s also a key stage that gives your body time to recover from any resulting soreness and replenish your muscle’s energy stores.
Full muscle recovery also means you’re more likely to perform better at your next workout. It helps you push a little harder at your next training session. In turn, this may help you see better gains in muscle mass, strength, and endurance.
What will help muscle recovery?
There are some basic steps you’ll always want to include in your muscle recovery strategy:
- Start with a dynamic warmup to slowly raise your heart rate.
- End with an active cooldown (with stretching).
- Hydrate before, during, and after workouts.
- Fuel each workout beforehand with a snack or meal with carbohydrates and protein.
- Take longer rests between workouts. Older adults have a slower rate of muscle repair (protein synthesis) compared to younger adults. So, you might find that post-workout muscle soreness lasts longer than it used to.
Listen to your body and plan your rest days and training sessions accordingly. But for a full recovery, it’s recommended that older adults plan on at least 48 to 72 hours between strength training sessions.
- Eat a post-workout snack with carbs and protein. Eating a snack within 30 minutes of your workout will help your recovery. A snack that is 3 parts carbs to 1 part protein is best for optimizing muscle recovery.
Low-fat chocolate milk is a good choice. So is a fruit smoothie. These types of snacks offer nutrients and help rehydrate the body. You might also try a whole-grain turkey wrap or hummus and crackers. Or you might snack on apple slices with nut butter. Follow your snack with a balanced, healthy meal 3 to 4 hours later.
- Include enough protein in your food plan. Your body needs more protein than it did when you were younger. This may be even more important if you’re active and strength training is a part of your fitness routine. Getting high-protein foods that provide all 9 essential amino acids is also important.
Learn about a tasty plant-based recipe that has the 9 essential amino acids that help your muscles repair themselves.
Eating an overall healthy diet rich in whole fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains provides the carbs your body needs to fuel your workouts. And including lean meats, beans, dairy, and soy foods gives you the protein your muscles need to recover.
- Get enough quality sleep. Research shows that sleep deprivation can disrupt protein synthesis—the body’s process for repairing and building muscle. That in turn can ramp up the loss of muscle mass (sarcopenia) in older adults.
Your muscles do more repair work during sleep than when you’re awake. So, getting enough sound sleep can support faster, more complete muscle recovery. If you have problems sleeping, work with your doctor for treatments that may help.
Check out these 4 simple rules to help you fall asleep faster and sleep better.
Taking the steps outlined above to get the most from your muscle recovery will go a long way to enhancing your muscle recovery. And that in turn will help improve your workouts and build your strength faster.
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This information is not intended to take the place of regular medical care or advice. Please check with your doctor before using this information or beginning any self-care program. Images used for this article do not depict any members of the Silver&Fit Program.
References
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This article was written by Gail Olson, edited by Jason Nielsen, and clinically reviewed by Jossue Ortiz, DC.
