Greetings from the sun-soaked madness of South Padre Island, Texas—where the wind howls like a rabid beast and the ocean beckons with a wicked grin. We're entrenched here for a spell, working, kiteboarding, and flirting with the edge of sanity. Wahoo!

Yesterday, your favorite mad scientist finally slammed the brakes and took a full day off. Back in Weatherford, TX, the ever-curious Ashley Glass cornered me with a piercing gaze to ask me when I last took a full day off?
“…ah, I think it was about a year ago.”

I had to dig deep into the chaotic archives of my mind.

Eeek.

Sure, I'd snatched bits of respite here and there, but a full day? Not so much.

…but that all changed—I seized yesterday like a bandit and claimed it as my own.

This is relevant as today is Halloween—a fitting time to rant about the dire importance of rest and recovery.

Now, you might picture me lounging like a decadent sultan, parked on my gluteus maximus while some imaginary butler stuffs bon-bons down my gullet. Hahah.

Nope.

I'm not opposed to the occasional vegetative state, but the wind was howling like a banshee. So after downing a sacramental coffee and a sinful red velvet muffin at the local coffee den—paired with some protein, of course—we chilled for a heartbeat before storming the beach to kiteboard.
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Two sessions later, I'd soared to a 17.7-foot jump, cracking into the top three in the USA for distance that day to boot.
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My comrade Gary and I tore through the wind and water like men possessed. We even racked up some karma credit by rescuing a poor soul whose vehicle had been swallowed by the merciless mud whileThomas did the pulling with his truck as we supplied some gear to help.

Ahhhhh. Exhilaration incarnate.

The point of this twisted tale is that recovery doesn't always mean becoming motionless.

In fact, I've discovered time and time again that light movement annihilates the uselessness of sea-slug mode every time.

No need to believe me—run your own reckless experiment.

Take a day off and then just chill in sea-slug mode. See how you feel the next day, and you can even get crazy and measure your HRV in the AM and your gym performance.

Now, on your next day off, by all means, limit your inputs, but get your body in easy motion. Take a long walk or two, hop on your bike, go kiteboard, do some sauna and cold as I recommend in the Phys Flex system, and then see how you feel and perform the next day.

I will bet you a large container of creatine that light movement will win.

Heck, look at almost every type of recovery—from the brutal old Russian systems to the rituals of elite athletes—and you'll see that light movement and stirring the blood does wonders.

Now, you are probably not flushing any toxins or all the other mumbo jumbo as to the “why”…

…but it works.

My bias here is to build it into your weekly training chaos. I am a huge fan of this template:

• M, W, F: Hoist heavy objects, with 1-2 days spiked with intense cardio.
• T, Th, Sat: Cardio carnage - titrate from cardiac dev to Zone 2
• Sun: Unloading day—go for a walk, get the blood flowing, and get your nutrition prepped and sorted ala the Flex Diet system.

Motion is lotion—so get your groove on this Halloween day.

Much love,

Dr. Mike
PS - I would love to know what you have found that works wonders for your recovery? Jam that reply button to let me know! Serious, I am curious.

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Mike T Nelson CISSN, CSCS, MSME, PhD
Associate Professor, Carrick Institute
Owner, Extreme Human Performance, LLC
Editorial Board Member, STRONG Fitness Mag

Mike T Nelson is a PhD and not a physician or registered dietitian. The contents of this email should not be taken as medical advice. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any health problem - nor is it intended to replace the advice of a physician. Always consult your physician or qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health.

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