After a Fix of adrenaline, your energy levels will be pumped!
In the Chamonix Valley, there’s plenty of extreme action, opportunities for life changing feats of human guts and endurance, plus alot of work to be done to sustain a lifestyle in the mountains and great outdoors. Often the mind is willing but the body is basically exhausted.
ChamoFix recommends four easy ways to keep ahead of the game and feel that buzz of health and general well being… not just through massage, though massage, of course, is one of the steps!
I’ve just had the best week ever last week, acheived loads more than normal and hardly feeling tired at all. The difference to usual: I just realised for the first time in months I’ve been making the effort to pack in the vegetables… and organic ones from the new shop down the valley in Les Houches! If you like your organic produce, try Chamonix’s organic farmers’ market in Chamonix Sud on Tuesdays 0830 – 1300h.
While it is sometimes the last thing you feel like after a long hike or climb, simple and *gentle* stretching of muscles and myofascia is a really important aid to quick recovery and rejuvenation of muscle power.
Muscle fibres shorten during exercise, tension and general usage, but in order to be at their most powerful and effective, muscle fibres need to be at their longest. You can help this by performing long stretches with each muscle group (gently, slow and NOT to the point of pain). And it’s really motivating to see how those people who practice regular yoga have bodies that respond best to massage. They are less likely to “seize up”.
Keep an eye out on the ChamoFix website for more details about Chamonix’s yoga classes. And to get started at your desk… check out this good list of static stretches at Brian Mac personal trainer website.
fresh mountain air - Chamonix Mont Blanc
There’s all sorts of literature and theories about the best way to breathe while doing sports… but my osteopath in Chamonix showed me a basic breathing technique that should be used all the time.. at work, rest or high-octane play. “Belly breathing” is the term for it. Typically (especially amongst computer/ desk bound generations) we tend to breathe short, shallow breaths, only accessing the top of our lungs. Your chest raises but everything below that doesn’t seem to move. By trying to fill your belly with air when you breathe, you find you push your diaphram down lower, which brings in loads more oxygen. The added benefit is that various organs below your diaphram are shifted about a bit, which helps make space for clearing away stagnant waste materials to the lymphatic system. Breathing deeply not only give you more oxygen for extra power during exercise, but as the body relies on movement for elimation of toxins, deep (belly) breathing helps move the internal organs. A massage you give yourself with every breathe!
There’s nothing like a dose of adrenaline or exhilaration to get you motivated for more. Without always pummeling yourself, it’s simply good to keep fit so that those adrenaline-filled moments either flying in the sky or careering down a mountain pass end up rejuvenating you and emptying your head for reboot!
But for ultimate sports performance and recovery, not to mention work and social stamina, it’s crucial to keep rehydrated before, during and after, sports. If you can keep hydrated with the occasional adrenaline rush, then that energy FIX will stay with you for longer.
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