Muscle soreness is a result of tears in your muscles while you’re working out. These tears cause pain and may result in inflammation. The soreness could present itself from 12 to 24 hours after your exercise session.
Soreness after a workout is something very common that is experienced by both beginners and experts in fitness. This kind of soreness can range from mild pain to incapacitating pain. This is why muscle soreness is not taken lightly. People are always looking for a way to reduce the discomfort or avoid it altogether.
Tips on Reducing Muscle Soreness
1. Go Easy on Your Exercises
When your muscles are sore, you should not entertain inactivity. You need to be engaged to relieve the muscle soreness and keep your activity level flowing. Stick to doing light exercises that do not add pressure to the affected areas.
This activity will help increase blood flow to the muscle which will in turn lead to faster relief. Blood carries important nutrients that can help repair your muscles and help them get stronger. Be careful about going in hard to avoid making the situation worse and ending up with an injury.
2. Apply Ice
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Using ice on your sore muscles will help reduce the swelling and in turn, leave you feeling better. Make sure to avoid using the ice directly on your skin because it could irritate it. This will only add to your problems. Instead, get a damp cloth and use it to hold the ice over your skin. Make sure to take breaks between each application for better results.
3. Use Heat
Heat can also be used to alleviate the soreness in your muscles. It will help minimize tension and boost blood circulation. With improved blood circulation, your muscles will get the oxygen needed to heal and repair the tears. This will in turn reduce any pain you’re experiencing.
4. Rest and Recover
As you would do on any other workout schedule, you need to have rest days. Despite the fact that you’re doing some light exercises, there should be a day or two to rest. This will allow your body to heal and repair your muscles.
You should however beware not to make the rest days an everyday affair. This will set you back on your progress. Yes, you’ll recover from the soreness but you’ll have to start all over again with your workouts to get to where you were before the onset of muscle soreness.
5. Keep Up with Your Protein Intake
Protein is one of the major food groups that contribute immensely to building and repairing the muscles. As you workout, your protein intake should be higher than normal if you want to see any significant results.
However, when it comes to soreness, most people tend to reduce their intake thinking they’ll add weight. This is a valid concern however, with the light exercises you’ll be able to keep up and burn some calories. Remember protein is very important if you want to get past the muscle soreness.
6. Hydrate
When the tears in your muscles occur, they remove waste and toxins. These toxins only add to the soreness and make it worse. To completely get rid of these toxins and waste, you need to flush them out.
This is where drinking a lot of water comes in. Water is the best medium used to flush out toxins from our bodies daily. It stands to reason that it will also remove the toxins around your affected area. This will help ease the soreness a great deal.
7. Laser Therapy
Laser therapy is used in a lot of ways including pain relief and reducing inflammation. Investing in a pain relief laser will help you ease your post-workout soreness. It works by decreasing nerve sensitivity and releasing endorphins that naturally relieve pain.
It also stimulates the production of ATP which is the energy used to distribute nutrients and oxygen through the blood. With increased oxygen flow and nutrients, your muscles can heal faster thus reducing muscle soreness.
8. Engage in Some Stretching Exercises
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Stretching your muscles does not play a big part in the recovery of your muscle tissues. However, it offers great relief from muscle soreness and gives you flexibility and range of motion.
When stretching, be sure to go easy on these exercises. This is because when you stretch your muscle too much it could lead to the muscle coming back tighter. This will not offer any relief which is what you are after. Be sure to listen to your body. If the stretching is too painful and uncomfortable for you to pull off, step aside, and avoid the stretches.
Conclusion
Post-workout muscle soreness is manageable if you take the right steps to ease the pain and repair the tissue. Soreness should not discourage you from keeping up with your workouts because it is absolutely normal and can happen to anyone. If you’re second-guessing the pain you feel then consider talking to a doctor.
However, try your best to stay away from any drugs. This also includes non-steroidal drugs because they may inhibit important muscle recovery. They may also slow down your progress when trying to build muscle strength. Take your time to try everything else first and see if it helps relieve the pain.
