The Importance of Recovery for Physical and Mental Health

This book offers a thorough and accessible look into the importance of recovery in both staying healthy and performing well, and highlights the detrimental effects of underrecovery on physical and mental health. Internationally renowned experts from psychology, physiology, sport medicine, health, and sport science offer interdisciplinary analysis of the effects of underrecovery as well as the use of applied intervention and prevention strategies. Over the last few decades, research in sports has provided numerous studies showing the importance of addressing recovery to find recovery-stress balance and build resources that help prevent illness and promote healthy living and well-being. Each chapter of this volume discusses a specific area of recovery, providing a collection of useful and practical lessons athletes and non-athletes can take forward in their training and beyond. Focusing on both research and applied counseling techniques to discuss recovery as an underestimated factor in physical and mental health, the book aims to enlighten readers on ways to incorporate recovery into their everyday lives to reduce stress and prevent injury. The book is written for the scientific community, applied health scientists, students, and interested readers. It draws on experiences and scientific findings from the field of sport to make them usable for an expanded understanding of recovery in the field of health and related areas such as the workplace.

Michael Kellmann is Professor of Sport Psychology at the Faculty of Sport Science at Ruhr University Bochum, Germany. He is also an Honorary Professor in the School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences at the University of Queensland, Australia. Sarah Jakowski is a Researcher and Lecturer at the Department of Sport Psychology, Faculty of Sport Science, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany. She has a doctoral degree in Sport Science (PhD) and a Master of Science in Psychology. Jürgen Beckmann is Professor of Sport Psychology, Emeritus of Excellence at the School of Medicine and Health at Technical University of Munich, Germany. He is also Honorary Professor in the School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences at the University of Queensland, Australia, and Adjunct Professor at the Deptartment of Physical Education and Sport Sciences of the University of Limerick, Ireland.

1. The importance of recovery: A long time neglected crucial concept for health and performance Sarah Jakowski, Jahan Heidari, and Michael Kellmann 2. Recovery and its impact on health Kristen Dieffenbach 3. Recovery and stress reactivity K. Wolfgang Kallus 4. Self-regulation of recovery Jürgen Beckmann 5. Underrecovery in elite athletes: Antecedents, implications, and prevention strategies Leslie Podlog, Cristiana Conti, Selenia di Fronso, and Maurizio Bertollo 6. Quality of life and recovery Tsz Lun (Alan) Chu, Robert J. Harmison, and Scott B. Martin 7. Resilience and recovery processes in sports Varley Teoldo Costa, Franco Noce, Camila Cristina Fonseca Bicalho, and Guilherme de Sousa Pinheiro 8. Recovery and the immune system Simon Haunhorst, Wilhelm Bloch, and Christian Puta 9. Sleep to heal and restore: The role of sleep in the recovery and regeneration process Sarah Jakowski, Asja Kiel, Lisa Kullik, and Daniel Erlacher 10. Physical activity as recovery resource for mental health in young people Asaduzzaman Khan and Nicola W. Burton 11. Physical activity as recovery resource for mental health in adults Nicola W. Burton and Asaduzzaman Khan 12. Impact of long COVID on recovery in sport and exercise Simon Haunhorst, Wilhelm Bloch, and Christian Puta 13. The challenge of school and participation in elite sports: Implications for the prevention of stress and mental health issues Markus Gerber 14. Exercise stress and recovery in active ageing individuals and masters athletes Peter R. Reaburn and John F. T. Fernandes 15. Concluding discussion: Recovery is more than just healing. Advocating a broader perspective on recovery in physical and mental health Jürgen Beckmann, Michael Kellmann, and Sarah Jakowski