Everything you Need to Know About Adaptogens and Muscle Recovery
Over the years, there have been numerous ingredients and products on the market that focus on recovery for athletes and gym-goers. With what feels like a new trend every year, adaptogens have been sneaking their way into firm favourites over the years, whether that’s from energy drinks to Instagram turmeric latte trends. Adaptogens, a natural super herb, has always been at the top of the list of those in the know to aid muscle recovery.
Elite Athlete and Tea & Tonic Director, Helen Hall comments: “I integrate adaptogens as part of my everyday nutrition – I use them to support my inner and outer wellness, both of which help to alleviate the impact my training creates on my body. What better way to get your Adaptogen fix than through the enjoyment of your favourite cup of tea?”
With their super herb properties, adaptogens can provide a beneficial boost to your health, stamina, and resilience. At Tea and Tonic we provide an array of adaptogens throughout our products, forever being in awe of their abilities! Whether that’s through Wellness Teas or Muscle Relief Balms, we have you covered, sourcing 100% natural ingredients and hand blending from the hills of Surrey, in a small batch production to lock in all that freshness and potency. In this article we’ll look at all things adaptogens, their abilities to support health and muscle recovery as well as how and where adaptogens are used today within the world of fitness. Looking specifically at their muscle relieving properties and why adaptogens are being hailed by many a sports person!
What are Adaptogens?
Adaptogens are a group of unique non-toxic herbs and fungi that help our body and mind literally adapt and fight against a variety of stresses. In turn they can aid sleep, energy, relaxation, anxiety, memory, alertness and of course physical performance! How? Our cortisol levels, along with other stress hormones, naturally spike during and after exercise, endurance sports and recovery can bring both positive and negative stress on our body. Adaptogens balance these stress hormones, including this cortisol, preventing the big spikes and dips which in turn fights off mental and physical fatigue – helping us to work out longer, recovery quicker and perform better in subsequent sessions. Adaptogens support in this recovery process with an ability to help keep cortisol in check allowing our body to use its energy on healing and recovering faster.
Adaptogens are now seen scattered throughout all kinds of sports related products because of this outstanding ability to provide our bodies with the extra fuel when we most need it. At Tea and Tonic this isn’t news to us, with many products that could help your sports and fitness regime such as our Muscle Tonic Relief Balm and our range of wellness teas which use adaptogens throughout. Our Relief Balm is a nutrient-charged fusion of age-old folk remedies packed with adaptogens like White and Red Ginseng, Ocimum Tenuiflorum (Holy Basil) and Schisandra Berry among others. Formulated specifically to help eliminate sore, tired achy muscles due to its super herb blend with anti-inflammatory properties. Not only that but also blended with British-grown herbs such as Chickweed, Rue, and Elderleaf alongside an aromatherapy blend of therapeutic-grade essential oils. All fusing together in synergy to provide a deep sense of muscular relief whilst also reviving the skin.
Can Adaptogens help with Muscle Recovery?
With the nickname ‘super herbs’, adaptogens are known to have an array of health benefits when incorporated into your daily routines. Used in herbal medicine for centuries, adaptogens have the reputation of improving longevity and protecting neurological and physical health. Adaptogens really are the ultimate superkick of fuel and energy recovery when you most need it, and incorporated into your daily routine provide great support for those budding Olympic athletes through to the more occasional gym go-er!
Due to their de-stress and anti-inflammatory properties, super herbs can soothe muscles and provide that helping hand when your muscles seem well and truly exhausted. There’s a whole world of adaptogens waiting to be explored, but the most common super blend you have no doubt come in contact with is Turmeric. With its high antioxidant properties, it’s seen as a key ingredient to help with reduced symptoms of onset muscle soreness, alongside helping improve symptoms of depression and arthritis. At Tea and Tonic, we’ve partnered our favourite Turmeric alongside its family member Ginger for The Tonic Ginger Turmeric Wellness Tea Bags. For a tasty daily consumption that provides convenience to adaptogen wellness, but also provides that super-boost in a convenient super tea! Leading to a healthy immune system alongside its anti-inflammatory properties, this tea is a saviour when it comes to unwinding your body after the day’s stressors. With its fiery and zingy deliciousness, it’s a great post-workout delight when feeling achy or run down.
Are Adaptogens used in Athletic Recovery?
The key to achieving peak performance is to balance the physical stress on the body in training and provide adequate recovery. Enter adaptogens! Adaptogens work on a molecular level to regulate these physical stresses. They help by increasing our ability to resist stress, allowing us to exercise for an extended period of time, but more importantly, reducing the amount of cortisol and enabling us to recover quicker. Due to adaptogens’ natural properties, adaptogens have been known to see appearances in athletes’ diets.
Ashwagandha, seen throughout many Tea and Tonic products like Golden Milk Inviting Sleep Wellness Tea and unsurprisingly like all adaptogen products has a vast array of goodness infused within! With the ability to boost mood, memory, muscle strength and decrease stress and anxiety it’s a perfect go-to tea for bedtime, helping you to unwind and sleep better. Ashwagandha is known to many as a cortisol-balancer, the hormone naturally released when exercising, it’s a perfect harmonizer and de-stressor for any energetic routine.
With adaptogens like Ginseng appearing in many energy drinks, it’s known to improve efficiency, stamina, and endurance, acting as the perfect natural boost. This ancient antioxidant has made itself a name in the world of athleticism infused within most sports-related products due to its natural and powerful wellness properties. Found within our Muscle Tonic Relief Balm its anti-inflammatory properties encourage recovery and help eliminate sore, tired achy muscles. Our balm turns into an oil as you massage into your muscles, enabling a deeper massage, perfect for post sessions.
Due to these properties adaptogens bring, they provide a huge accessibility factor for incorporating goodness easily within your everyday routines. Embedded throughout all Tea and Tonic products, adaptogens are ideal for incorporating into your lifestyle! With key benefits like de-stressing and anti-inflammatory properties, super herbs are a saviour when it comes to seeking healing methods like that of muscle recovery.
