Athlete Recovery Strategies Flashcards

Flotation REST (Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy) primarily aids athlete recovery by:

Answer: Reducing cortisol, lowering musculoskeletal pain, and promoting deep relaxation

Flotation REST reduces sensory input, lowers cortisol and muscle tension, and promotes a deeply relaxed state that enhances subjective and physiological recovery.

During a 3-week training camp, an athlete shows declining jump height, increased fatigue, and stable HRV. This pattern is most consistent with:

Answer: Functional overreaching (FOR)

Functional overreaching presents with temporary performance decrements and fatigue that resolve with short-term rest, while HRV remaining stable distinguishes it from NFOR.

Which recovery nutrition strategy is most effective for an athlete who cannot consume solid food within 30 minutes post-exercise?

Answer: Consume a liquid carbohydrate-protein blend (e.g., chocolate milk or recovery shake)

Liquid nutrition with carbohydrates and protein is rapidly absorbed, making it ideal when solid food tolerance or access is limited post-exercise.

Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) is sometimes used for recovery. What is its primary proposed benefit?

Answer: Passively increasing local blood flow and reducing muscle soreness without active effort

NMES elicits involuntary muscle contractions at low intensities that enhance local circulation and lymphatic drainage, reducing DOMS without taxing the athlete.

A sport scientist is designing a recovery protocol for a tournament lasting 5 days with daily competition. Which periodized approach is most appropriate?

Answer: Prioritize rapid-turnaround modalities (nutrition, sleep, CWI) daily and reserve deep-tissue massage for rest days only

During high-frequency competition, rapid-turnaround modalities that don't interfere with readiness are prioritized, while more intensive interventions are reserved for when they won't affect next-day performance.

Which hormone's nocturnal pulsatile release is most disrupted by poor sleep quality, directly impairing tissue repair in athletes?

Answer: Growth hormone (GH)

Growth hormone is primarily secreted in pulses during slow-wave sleep and is essential for protein synthesis and tissue repair; disrupted sleep markedly reduces its nocturnal output.

According to the Total Quality Recovery (TQR) scale, what does a score below 13 (out of 20) typically indicate?

Answer: Insufficient recovery requiring load modification

A TQR score below 13 signals inadequate recovery, indicating the athlete needs reduced training load or additional recovery interventions before high-intensity work.