Post-exercise health care guidelines: four things to avoid and scientific monitoring guidelines

Four Things to Avoid After Exercise

1. Don't rest immediately. After strenuous exercise, immediately stopping to rest will halt the rhythmic contractions of the muscles. The large amount of blood that flowed into the muscles cannot return to the heart through muscle contraction, causing a drop in blood pressure and temporary cerebral ischemia. This can lead to symptoms such as palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness, paleness, and even shock or fainting.

2. Don't bathe immediately. Taking a cold shower immediately after exercise will cause sudden vasoconstriction due to the sudden stimulation, increasing blood circulation resistance and lowering the body's resistance, making one more susceptible to illness. A hot shower will increase blood flow to the skin, causing excessive blood to flow into the muscles and skin, leading to insufficient blood supply to the heart and brain. This can cause dizziness in mild cases, collapse and shock in severe cases, and may also trigger other chronic diseases.

3. Don't eat large amounts of sugar. Some men find it comforting to eat sweets or drink sugary drinks after strenuous exercise and therefore believe that eating more sweets after exercise is beneficial. Actually, eating too many sweets after exercise will deplete the body's vitamin B₁, leading to fatigue, loss of appetite, and hindering recovery. Therefore, it's best to eat plenty of vitamin B₁-rich foods after strenuous exercise, such as vegetables, liver, and eggs.

Alcohol should not be consumed to relieve fatigue. After strenuous exercise, the body is in a state of heightened activity. If men drink alcohol at this time, the body absorbs alcohol more quickly, increasing its impact on organs like the liver and stomach. Over time, this can lead to fatty liver, cirrhosis, gastritis, stomach ulcers, and even dementia. It's important to note that even beer is not advisable after exercise, as it increases uric acid levels in the blood, causing significant irritation to joints and potentially triggering joint inflammation.

How to Monitor the Health Impact of Exercise

Since ancient times, exercise has been an important way to improve health and strengthen the body. What constitutes reasonable and moderate exercise? What physiological effects will exercise have on the body? This requires monitoring objective indicators of the health impact of exercise.

Men, before starting exercise, you should measure and record basic indicators such as heart rate, respiratory rate, chest circumference, chest-to-respiratory ratio, weight, and abdominal circumference. You should also measure or check your blood pressure, vital capacity, and electrocardiogram to ensure they are normal. Record any subjective feelings such as appetite, sleep, fatigue, headache, lower back and leg pain, and the presence of numbness in the limbs or constipation. After starting exercise, you can keep a record for one month and compare and analyze the results to observe the health-improving effects of exercise.

To more closely observe the effects of exercise on the body, a daily exercise self-monitoring record form should be designed. For example, when exercising every morning, first record your heart rate and respiratory rate before getting out of bed, then record your heart rate and respiratory rate before each exercise session, and finally record your heart rate and respiratory rate after exercise. Record the duration of exercise and the time required for heart rate and breathing rate to return to pre-exercise levels. Finally, indicate the type of exercise performed that day. If you are unable to participate in exercise for any special reason, mark the reason on the record sheet.

During the initial 1-2 weeks of preparation, the exercise intensity should be low. If there are no discomforts after exercise, you can proceed to the adjustment phase. This phase lasts 3-4 weeks, generally aiming for a post-exercise heart rate not exceeding 150% of the pre-exercise heart rate and a slight feeling of fatigue. The third phase is the adaptation phase, where you can moderately increase the exercise intensity and duration. If the post-exercise heart rate still does not exceed 150% of the pre-exercise heart rate, it is considered normal, indicating that your health condition is fully capable of adapting to these exercises. If this phase continues for more than six months without adverse reactions, it can become your standard for long-term, reasonable, and moderate exercise. Unless there are special circumstances, exercise should be performed daily.