Is the Exercise Cool-Down Really Necessary?
Full article here:
www.nytimes.com/.../15best.html
Excerpt:
The idea of the cool-down seems to have originated with a popular theory — now known to be wrong — that muscles become sore after exercise because they accumulate lactic acid. In fact, lactic acid is a fuel. It’s good to generate lactic acid, it’s a normal part of exercise, and it has nothing to do with muscle soreness. But the lactic acid theory led to the notion that by slowly reducing the intensity of your workout you can give lactic acid a chance to dissipate...
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Former Member
It has been drilled into me that the cool-down is critical from a cardiovascular perspective. I do it religiously in workouts (genuinely pleasant) but I'm practically neurotic about it in meets. I have heart health concerns, but it does seem wise to wind down, especially as we age, as other posters have suggested.
It has been drilled into me that the cool-down is critical from a cardiovascular perspective. I do it religiously in workouts (genuinely pleasant) but I'm practically neurotic about it in meets. I have heart health concerns, but it does seem wise to wind down, especially as we age, as other posters have suggested.
