Recovery goes hand in hand with exercise. If you exercise responsibly, realizing your limitations, and working out according to your level of fitness, your recoveries will indeed be complete and you will suffer less set backs. So learn how to, not only hear, but also to obey the signs that your body gives you to wrap it up for the day. Progress takes time. Progress takes time... Prevention, moderate exercise, proper rest, nutrition, and being positive are the key to recovery.
☺Prevention and common sense are closely related. Sometimes we do things that expose us to unnecessary dangers. We avoid recommended safety precautions or think we can bend the rules in exchange for expediency. Murphy's Law is appropriate here: Whatever can happen, will happen. Sometimes it sounds like corny, safety Bob advice-- but respect safety like you respect the law of gravity. Many athletes unnecessarily disregard FOCUS and get hurt. It always seems to be that one incident when we are lax in our consciousness and we get hurt really bad on gym equipment or some other way.
☺My second piece of advice here has to do with moderation in exercise. It is very important to be honest about where you are at physically and exercise at your present level of fitness. Listen to your body and avoid straining and pushing the outer limits. For example, I used to do 200 push-ups at a time. However, sometimes, I would hear myself strain. You know when you clench your teeth and push as if you are giving birth. The heart is really under heavy load when you are straining and pushing weights for those extra sets. I felt pain in my chest afterwards and realized that God had given me a break from my stupidity.
☺Try to maintain regularity in your exercise routine even if you have to modify your routine to just walking. This will help you avoid de-conditioning while you are recovering. Sometimes recovery is also a time of despondency. We might get down on ourselves and then succumb to unhealthy eating patterns. Especially during recovery, we need to stay diligent and focused on how much progress we have made and our ultimate goals.
☺ In general, you will have a very difficult time performing optimally if you neglect proper rest. The going recommendation is 8 hours sleep, especially during increased intensity of exercise. Sleep is the body's time to recuperate and restore energy levels. It is the body's time for repair.
☺Nutritionally, I strive to eat healthy and avoid foods that deplete my body of needed nutrients I need to recover. I make a point of drinking plenty of water during the day, but also during sleep as the body needs water for waste disposal and repair.               
☺My final piece of advice is on avoiding stress and staying positive. Emotional upheavals will do more damage and undue more training than lack of sleep, poor eating, and too much or too little exercise. Unhealthy emotions tear away at the soul and rot away the fleshly organism. Hate, anxiety, depression, and the like can cause disease and make you mentally unsound. So always, be careful about your minds nutritional diet. Positive thoughts, people, books, entertainment, etcetera yield positive results mentally, physically, and spiritually.
☺I strive to read the Bible daily and flip through my positive quotes I've collected and pasted on either side of a deck of index cards. These, along with positive family, friends, and associates, are my mentors that keep my life out of the toilet.