During the final minutes of a game, your body is in "fight or flight" mode. Your heart rate is up, and your nerves are frayed. Once the final whistle blows, your parasympathetic nervous system kicks in to compensate. This "rebound effect" can leave you feeling more tired than if you had actually played in the game yourself.
"Maize-sausage," Elias muttered, wiping a streak of dried turf-paint from his forehead. It was our team's ridiculous, high-calorie tradition: a thick, corn-battered sausage slathered in spicy mustard, eaten only after a final. It tasted like triumph and grease. We ate in a tired, companionable silence on the equipment trunks, the adrenaline leaving us in a slow, receding tide. nap after the game final maizesausage work