We’re in the middle of yet another Fashion Month, which is likely to wear you down after a restful summer. The Daily checked in with Tim Park, Tier X trainer at Hudson Yards Equinox, to get his suggestions on how to recover and look and feel better than ever.
1. Plan
Planning starts before Fashion Week and recovery is something that we are always cognizant of. Working with Laquan Smith for over 2 years and having guided him through multiple fashion shows, recovery has something that has always been incorporated into his program. This time last year Laquan’s goal was to look as lean as possible prior to NYFW. This led to us going through higher intensity workouts leading up to his show. The pressures of getting a collection ready for NYFW and pushing his workouts ultimately led to burn out. A year later and wiser, we made sure to communicate what he wants and established what is realistic. We have made amazing progress from last year to now, which has afforded him the luxury of being able to maintain the shape he is in with relative ease heading into Fashion Week. What I have found to be a successful strategy for entering high stress periods is giving yourself an easier week prior to an end date in terms of your workouts because the last thing you want to do is add to your stress during a high-stress period.
Tim Park (Courtesy)
2. Sleep
Aim for 6-8 hours nightly. It’s extremely important to maintain a consistent sleep schedule. Create a calming bedtime routine, avoiding screens. Optimize your sleep environment: minimize light and noise, keep the room cool. Quality sleep is crucial for recovery. Additionally, many have discovered that staying at the Equinox Hotel has become the place to stay during fashion week due to it’s sleep program. The an incredible Art + Science of Sleep program designed to maximize guest’s sleep and recovery. The science backed program is a 360′ journey to regeneration featuring the AM + PM rituals, integrated spa treatments and amenities designed to promote deep, restorative sleep. The Spa at Equinox Hotels also offers cutting-edge MLXi3Dome treatment for the ultimate detox, followed by a deeply relaxing CBD massage and a sleep-promoting IV Drip – designed to prep your mind and body for a restful night’s sleep ahead.
3. Nutrition + Hydration
After-parties and celebrations have become as much of fashion week as the shows themselves, but it’s important to fuel your body with the proper nutrition and hydration. Lack of sleep and alcohol consumption can negatively impact your body so focus on simple nutrition and hydration with electrolytes to help your body bounce back.
4. Spa
Massage therapy and red-light therapy can be very beneficial in recovering for a busy and stressful week. While they work differently, and the experience is quite different, they have many shared benefits. Both have been shown to be effective at:
1. Reducing inflammation in the body, which is often elevated due to stress. Lower inflammation can promote faster recovery of muscles and tissues, helping alleviate physical discomfort.
2. Improves Mood. Both massage therapy and RLT have been shown to increase the production of serotonin and endorphins, which can help combat stress and improve mood. It can also reduce levels of cortisol, the stress hormone, helping
to create a sense of relaxation.
3. Promotes better sleep. MT and RLT can help regulate circadian rhythms, making it easier to fall asleep and enjoy deeper, more restful sleep. This is crucial after a stressful week when sleep might be disrupted.
4. Relieves muscle soreness. If you’ve been physically active or feeling tense due to stress, MT and RLT can help reduce muscle soreness and stiffness by promoting better circulation and tissue repair.
Red Light Therapy also has these additional benefits:
1. Skin Health. Red light therapy has many benefits for the skin, such as reducing wrinkles, acne, and other skin issues, which can promote a sense of well-being and relaxation.
2. Enhances cellular energy production. Red light therapy boosts mitochondrial function, the powerhouse of cells. By increasing ATP (energy) production, it helps cells repair and regenerate more efficiently, which aids in physical recovery and revitalization after a hectic week.
5. Cold Plunge/Contrast Bathing
Cold plunging is known to stimulate our sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. With a variety of cold plunge and heat therapy options at multiple Equinox locations, we incorporate contrast therapy into their routines especially when focusing on recovery. Through a method we call stress inoculation we can manipulate this activation of our nervous system. Simply put, we are willfully putting our bodies in a stressful environment which is how we build our resilience to stress. While in the cold plunge (or trying to get in) many people will want to immediately hop out. This is occurring because our sympathetic nervous system or our “fight or flight” response is turning on. Once we come out of the cold plunge, we are aware of how comfortable it is to not be in the cold plunge and that’s because our parasympathetic nervous system or our “rest and digest” response has hopefully switched on. Typically, guidelines say to aim for 3 minutes in the cold plunge. “Contrast bathing” can be more palatable. Contrast bathing is typically defined as having a 1:3 ratio of cold to hot meaning: if you are in the cold plunge for 1 minute then you go into the jacuzzi for 3 minutes. This 4-minute stretch of cold and hot we can call a series. You should plan to do at least 3 series in a contrast bathing session. Contrast bathing also has the benefit of acting as a way to “pump” our circulatory system by the vasoconstriction we get from the cold plunge and the vasodilation from the jacuzzi.
Photos: Courtesy of Equinox
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