Whether you train twice a week or twice a day, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) is incredibly demanding on the body. In order to improve your training performance you will need to recovery in between sessions.

Recovery involves nutrition, sleep and mobility.

1. Nutrition: Match your intake to your activity level... so if you train hard you can eat more than on a less active day. Have a small carb snack before training like a banana. Eat lean protein and carbs within an hour after training then again after another hour.

2. Sleep: Getting to sleep after a late session may be tough but studies show carbs help lower the cortisol levels to help induce sleep. Magnesium supplements may also help which can be as simple as soaking your feet in Epsom salts for 15 minutes.

3. Mobility: Make sure you stretch all your muscles after a session while they are still warm. Pay special attention to your hips, ham strings, upper back and chest, shoulders and neck. To further increase mobility and ease tension you can use a foam roller or firm ball for 2 minutes on each part of the back, legs, arms and shoulders. All that gripping can be tough on your fingers so remember to stretch them as well as wrists and ankles.

Conclusion: What you do outside of the dojo is just as important as what you do inside. Give your nutrition priority, get plenty of sleep and add mobilisation to your routine. Your training session will suffer if you haven’t recovered properly from the last one.