Post-Comp Adrenaline Dump

By Bri Siegert

What is it?

There’s a very specific feeling athletes get right after a competition.

It’s like being exhausted, but also wired. You start replaying every event and dissect where you could have pushed harder, what you need to work on and hammer before the next comp, and suddenly you’re more motivated than you were before the comp. You want to train. You want to fix things. You want to ride that competitive high right back into the gym and get to work.

And honestly? That fire is a good thing. But acting on it too soon is where athletes fall into the trap of the post-comp adrenaline dump.

The Adrenaline High Before the Dump

After a competition, whether it be CrossFit, HYROX, powerlifting, a Tri, or something else…your body is pumped full of adrenaline, cortisol, and stress hormones. You’ve just demanded DAYS of intensity, emotional stress, travel, fueling ups and down, and spikes in your nervous system output.

So your mind feels ready. But your body needs a break. It’s COOKED.

Athletes ignore this all the time because mentally, they “feel fine.” They’re not sore anymore. They’re itching to train. So they walk back into the gym too soon and ready to get. After. IT.

The problem is…your body has not caught up to your mind’s motivation.

Why Jumping Back In Too Early Backfires

Here’s what usually happens:

You show up for your first real training session post-comp and you feel like taking a day or two off was enough for your body to recover. Then, all of a sudden…

You can’t hit your row paces.

Your 80% feels like 100%.

Your legs feel gluey.

Your heart rate spikes way too fast.

You might even feel slightly sick. And mentally you’re frustrated…

This creates a spiral:

1. You push harder to prove you “still have it”

   
   
   
   

2. Your recovery tanks

   
   
   
   

3. You prolong the very fatigue you’re trying to downregulate

   
   
   
   

4. You stall your return to actual training

   
   
   
   

5. You increase the risk of getting sick

   
   
   
   

6. Or at worst? You get injured

   
   
   
   

And all because you didn’t give yourself a long enough recovery window.

Adrenaline and Recovery

Most athletes think recovering from a competition means:

• Taking Monday off

  
  
  
  

• Maybe doing a flush on Tuesday

…and then hopping back into full training Wednesday.

That is not a true recovery week post-comp. This will also be highly dependent on the individuality of each athlete. Some athletes CAN come back from competition in a week’s time. Some need anywhere from 2-4 weeks. This isn’t fully taking training off, but it’s adjusting your volume and intensity. 

This can be dependent on a few factors:

1. Athlete Age

2. Training Age

3. Competition experience

4. Gender (males tend to recover more quickly than females)

5. How hard the athlete went in competition. 

6. Fueling, hydration, sleep, stress

7. So many other factors…

Either way, your nervous system needs more than a couple of days before you can get back to your regular training routine. 

A competition weekend is not the same as a hard week of training. You take a hit in more areas than just your body:

• Your CNS

  
  
  
  

• Your immune system

  
  
  
  

• Your endocrine system

  
  
  
  

• Your digestion

  
  
  
  

• Your sleep

  
  
  
  

• Your hydration

  
  
  
  

• Your mental load

  
  
  
  
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  Your emotional bandwidth

  
  
  
  

All of those systems have to down shift before you can truly start to push again. 

If you don’t your body forces the issue for you in the form of:

• Extreme fatigue

  
  
  
  

• Slow recovery between sets

  
  
  
  

• Resting heart rate increases; heart rate spike in training

  
  
  
  

• Poor pacing that would normally be easy (think along the lines of machine/running intervals)

  
  
  
  

• Random aches and pains

  
  
  
  

• Mood dips

  
  
  
  

• And the classic: “Why do I feel so out of shape all of a sudden?”

Hormones Post-Competition

In a review called, “Hormonal adaptation and the stress of Exercise Training” (2013), it’s discussed how exercise (especially high stress exercise) simulates cortisol and how chronic stress or repeated high stress can lead to maladaption. 

It argues that while cortisol’s acute response to stress/exercise CAN be adaptive, over time…excessive or poorly managed cortisol can impair recovery, protein metabolism, immune function, and adaptation to training. 

So, if you jump back into intense training too soon after competition the elevated cortisol and stress response will hinder adaptation and prolong recovery. YIKES!

How to Actually Recover Post-Competition

Here’s what an ideal post-comp week SHOULD look like:

Days 1-3: Full Body (and mind) Reset

• Sleep as much as possible

  
  
  
  

• Hydrate heavily

  
  
  
  

• Prioritize digestion friendly meals; eat to fullness and don’t count macros. We typically eat much more during competition which can be hard on our digestion so it’s important to listen to your body during this time on what it needs/craves

  
  
  
  

• Walk, move, or flow

  
  
  
  

• Keep intensity very low (Zone 1–2 only)

  
  
  
  

Days 4-7: Training

• Easy aerobic work, no double sessions or training more than an hour to 90 minutes

  
  
  
  

• Light strength / bodybuilding

  
  
  
  

• This is a great time to reflect and talk with your coach about the season coming up.

  
  
  
  

• Take class with the community and enjoy fitness without trying to push the limits or take part in fitness you enjoy that you don’t do often!

  
  
  
  

• No sprint intervals or heavy lifting (above 80%)

  
  
  
  

• Tons of mobility and soft tissue. Body work and pin pointing chronic pains

  
  
  
  

• Focus on: movement quality, blood flow, heart rate staying LOW

  
  
  
  

Week 2: Gradual Return to Normal Training

• Slowly return to intensity. Monitor your recovery here.

  
  
  
  

• Start adding in complex lifts again, but keep the intensity around that 70-80%

  
  
  
  

• Slowly get back to your usual volume if your recovery is feeling good and you're sleeping through the night. 

If you rush into training too soon, you’re not only prolonging your recovery…You’re delaying getting back to the intensity and consistency that actually makes you fitter.

The fastest way to return to normal training is the slow way. AKA, “the smart way.” You will not lose fitness in one week, but you will encounter recovery issues and prolong doing what you love by rushing back too early.