5 Ways to recover from a hard day's cricket | Cricket coaching, fitness and tips

5 Ways to recover from a hard day's cricket

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How do you get over that next day (or few days) soreness that cricket gives you?

I'm thinking about it especially today because, until now, my team have been good enough to bowl sides out well inside the allotted 50 overs. But this weekend it took the full overs to get the runs and my keeping legs have been feeling the strain.

It's not just annoying to walk around at work feeling stiff on a Monday either.

Players who play twice a week end up doing poorly in their second game because their body has not recovered from the first.

Fortunately, 'recovery' is a well research part of sport, especially in professional country cricket where intense games come thick and fast.

Here are some of the simpler methods of getting back on track quickly:

1. Compression tights

Research has show that tights increase the flow of blood to muscles in the legs, and more blood means more oxygen which leads to a quicker recovery. The anecdotal reports of players in professional county cricket back this up.

Most professional strength coaches in cricket insist players put on a pair as soon as possible after play or coming off from batting or fielding. There is nothing to stop you doing the same.

2. Foam rolling

As we have discussed before, foam rolling is a fast and easy way to relax the fascia around muscles and reduce the minor inflammation that comes off the back of a cricket match.

You may have to experiment to find the perfect routine for you, but I find 5 minutes of foam rolling on the morning of a match, followed by a longer session the day after works to reduce soreness and improve range of motion in my joints.

It's also excellent when used as a warm up for a 'blood flow' workout (see number 3).

3. Increasing blood flow

Like we talked about with compression tights, one really effective way to improve recovery is to increase the flow of blood to muscles.

By far the easiest way to do this is by working those muscles with simple exercises the morning after play. Just moving your body is enough to get the heart rate up and more blood round the body.

You can walk, swim or go for a bike ride. You can do a light bodyweight workout which is especially good if you have injury problems and want to do some preventative exercise. The point is; get moving.

4. Sleeping

We all know we should get plenty of sleep but how many of us get enough every night?

But we should, because sleep is an incredible recovery tool. Put simply, the more we get the faster we recover.

And while nobody really knows what 'enough' sleep is (8 hours is a good rule of thumb but far from accurate for everyone), experts do agree that while you sleep your muscles get to work repairing themselves at a tremendous rate.

So the more time you can spend in that state the better. Plus it gives you a good excuse for a bit of a lie in. What's not to like?

5. Eating

Another overlooked recovery method is eating. A lot of cricketers think that 'carbing up' after a game is all you need to do but it's actually about 'nutrienting up'

(I know nutrienting isn't a word, but you get my drift.)

After a game your body needs fuel to start repairing damage. Yes, carbohydrates are an important part of that but so are fats, protein, vitamins and minerals.

Get a good 'post workout' drink in as fast as possible after straining in the field. It doesn't have to be an expensive powder either. Chocolate milk works brilliantly and even a post-match pint of beer has been show to aid recovery.

Other than that, it's all about eating natural, unprocessed, whole foods including lots of fruit and vegetables. A bit like this.

Will these 5 tips stop all post-match soreness?

No, nothing can do that, but a few simple tricks can make a big difference and allow you to play better in more games for longer in your cricket career.

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Comments

Is it best to wear the compression tights during training or only after training is finished?

Very timely article indeed! Any tips on how to recover from mental fatigue? Especially, after loosing a close game, or dropping a key catch or not staying till the end to finish the chase?

I gotta say, if it wasnt for the compression tights, i probably wouldve given up the game!! As a keeper and opening bat, it can be carnage on the old legs (22 year old legs mind you!!) I live in Australia and we play 2 Day games which is minimum 90 over innings...trust me, that hurts lol. I was wondering the same as Aleksander, i generally wear my skins while playing. is it better to just wear them after, or try to wear during and after?

Alek, put the tights on as soon as possible after play/practice. So for example if you come of the field after a first innings fielding session put them on in the break.

Most of the time you see players wearing the tights during play or training. This approach of wearing them only after training is a new take. What would be the benefit of only wearing them after play as opposed to during play?

Very Interesting article, with some good pointers
Skins are invaluable i dont know how people survived without them especially keepers and bowlers. My personal opinion is to have 2 pairs one for during the game which are a higher quality than the ones u use after the game. Hydration is still the main point for me if u dont hydrate well after the game with water then ur gonna sieze up the next day, even a small work out at the gym can help i find.

Most playes don't wear the tights during play, but it's a personal preference. The recovery benefits are best after play, but if you feel comfortable wearing them during a match or training then go for it. It doesn't matter that much as long as they are on after exertion.

I agree partially on the nutrition part. Carbing up is essential to stimulate glucose production and thus fuel for the body.

However, proteins are essentials for the recovery of muscles and tissue. Ideally, after a match you'd take about 20-35 grams of proteins to aid recovery. Even though we all agree that a pint or two is part of the game, it does not in any way aid or speed up recovery as the body sees alcohol as a poison. In that respect the attention from the body shifts from muscle and tissue recovery to fighting off the poison.

Drinking alcohol after a match thus increases recovery time. Rather take a large bowl of semi-skimmed yoghurt or two protein bars.

A lot of static stretches are necessary after the game specially those excercises targeting muscles around your glutes, sides and hamstrings and groin....these stretches should be done one side at a time by holding them for good 3 mintues on the same time inhaling and exhaling to relax those muscles......these would help the next day to reduce any tension build up....

Real static stretches takes time and most people do not understand the importance of it....therefore are injury prone....

A hot shower after the muscles are relaxed from static stretches should do the job for the next day......