The cooldown is the most neglected part of most training routines.
An effective training session should have three parts; a warmup, workout, and a cooldown.
Yet most people skip the last part, and almost no jiu-jitsu school performs one after class.
But the cooldown is crucial to jumpstart the recovery process, and move from a sympathetic, fight or flight state, to parasympathetic, rest and digest.
Without promoting this transition after your workout you are delaying the recovery process, which could lead to overtraining, and potentially future injury.
Why Add A Cooldown?
Kickstarting the recovery process is the best reason to add a cooldown, as this is when all of the adaptions we are looking for from training take place.
But a simple, five-minute cooldown can do much more.
Optimal recovery leads to better future performance, less post-training stiffness, and reduced chances of future injury.
The following drills also allow the spine to reset and return to neutral.
Training jiu-jitsu and weigh training can encourage extension of the spine.
Excess residual extension can lead to compression, poor posture, and potentially pain and injury.
I personally suffered from being stuck in extension from years of grappling and traditional weightlifting.
I now use the following positions to reset and recover after every session.
Inverted Rockback Breathing
One of the best ways to jumpstart the recovery process and transition from sympathetic to parasympathetic is through breathing.
The Inverted Rockback drill promotes expansion of the posterior ribs, which are often compressed. A compressed posterior ribcage prevents deep breathing to the most efficient part of your lungs, the bottom.
This position also gets you out of extension and supports blood flow back to the head and heart.
People often assume child’s pose for recovery, but that position causes extension of the spine and compresses the back lower ribs.
Aim for 10 slow breaths in the Inverted Rockback position, while pushing through your forearms to expand the back ribs.
Try not to use too much tension, as the goal is to relax and expand with each breath.
Static Back
The Static Back position has been a savior when my lower back is flared up, however, it’s also great for post training.
This position allows the muscles of the lower back to relax and the pelvis to return to neutral.
The beauty of this position is that you do nothing but relax into it.
You can add some deep, slow breathing to this make it even more effective, but ultimately, just hang out here for a minimum of 5 minutes.
Aim for 90 degree angles at your hips and knees, and don’t allow your legs to splay outward.
If you don’t have a chair to prop your legs on, find the position against a wall (sometimes called the 90/90 position in PRI), with slight downward pressure through your heels.
Legs Up The Wall
This position is similar to the Static Back, but offers its own benefits, and has been used by movement cultures for hundreds, if not thousands of years.
This position promotes circulation back to the heart and brain, removes extension from the spine, and induces a parasympathetic state.
Simply find a wall and get your hips as close to it as possible with your legs together, straight up the wall.
One common mistake is foot position, as people allow their feet to collapse. Try to maintain the bottoms of your feet horizontal with the ground. Pretend like you’re balancing two cups of water on your arches.
Again, just find this position, breathe deeply through your nose, and chill.
Final Thoughts
Everyone seems to be searching for a silver bullet or hack to give them an edge, like ice baths, massage guns, or supplements, but adding a cooldown can help more than any of those things.
These positions are low effort and basically fool-proof.
You can pick just one of the above, or use all three after training. Aim for a minimum of 5 minutes and a goal of a 10 minute cooldown.
There are certain breathing protocols you can do to promote recovery that you can combine with these positions, but we’ll save those for another article.
Don’t worry so much about that, just focus on slow, deep, nasal breathing and relax.
This is the low hanging fruit for better recovery and injury prevention.
Just commit to it after every workout to reap the benefits.
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