The Local newsletter is your free, daily guide to life in Colorado. For locals, by locals. Sign up today!
Colorado boasts almost 40,000 miles of trails, and by the time August arrives, your body feels like it’s hiked them all. Instead of squandering what’s left of the season parked on the couch nursing your adventure-related aches and pains, recover from your summer and get back in the wild by employing these Front Range fixes.
If you hurt your knee running the 16-mile Pikes Peak Greenway Trail in Colorado Springs, then try The Cryosleeve.
A collaboration between Denver companies Recoup Fitness and Boa Technology, it features a silicon-based cooling gel pack on the inside and a neoprene and Lycra exterior that can stretch over any limb.
It simultaneously compresses and ices your injured limb, alleviating swelling caused by strains, sprains, and pesky shin splints all while bracing the joint to prevent twisting your knee again while it’s healing. Just chill the sleeve in the freezer for two hours or more to get about an hour’s worth of icy relief. $89
If you go hiking at Mesa Verde National Park on a scorching 95-degree afternoon, try Basis.
The recovery drink made by Denver residents uses a hydration technique pioneered by the World Health Organization: water bolstered by added electrolytes, such as potassium, that help the body absorb moisture.
Exhaling expels water from the body, so when you’re gasping for breath in Colorado’s high-elevation air, dehydration can happen like that. You might be tempted to turn to Gatorade, but Basis contains more electrolytes and gets its taste from natural sweeteners instead of artificial ones. In other words, bring on the heat. $30 per 12-pack
If you feel sluggish more than a week after climbing in Eldorado Canyon State Park, then try a MuscleHealth analysis.
It’s an ultrasound technique that measures glycogen, the substance that stores energy-giving carbohydrates, developed by Denver company MuscleSound.
The method—offered at sports medicine centers such as Denver’s Action Spine & Sports and used by the Colorado Rockies—provides you with a full-body analysis. Essentially, it lets you know when your muscles are too tired for adventuring and you should skip that upcoming fourteener to rest and avoid injury. Price varies according to provider
If you crisp your skin during a cloudless day of white-water rafting on the Arkansas River, then try Moon Mother Hemp Co.’s Heal All CBD Skin Balm.
The balm uses CBD from Boulder-grown hemp as well as natural goodies such as jojoba oil, Saint-John’s-wort, calendula, and tea tree oil. Cannabidiol, more commonly known as CBD, has been shown to treat pain, taking some sting out of your lobster-y hue. Plus, the botanicals in this made-in-Boulder lotion (find it at pharmacies and apothecaries) purportedly hydrate the skin to speed up healing. $35 per ounce