Recover From Muscle Soreness in 5 Simple Ways

Muscle soreness is something we’ve all experienced, whether the result of workout, physical work or other activities that put a certain stress on our muscles. And we’ve all suffered through the pain of carrying out the simplest of tasks like dressing or going down the stairs due to that.

Fortunately, it only lasts for a few days and even better than that, there are easy ways to relieve the soreness in your muscles and speed up your recovery.

If you follow these few tips, you can be sure you’ll feel like brand new in no time.

 

Stretching

The first line of defense after a workout or physical activity is stretching. This type of exercise maximizes mobility and flexibility and a faster muscle recovery by lengthening the fibers that shortened during the activity you performed.

Apart from this, it improves your overall performance and well-being in day-to-day life.

 

Consuming the right food

Eating plays an important part in our overall health and is an important tool for muscle maintenance and recovery. The right food can provide the necessary amount of protein, carbs and fats to prevent muscle soreness or to at least make it more bearable.

Protein, for example, is widely known for its recovery role while omega-3 fats also provide a helping hand in reducing inflammation.

On the other hand, it is recommended to avoid food with high sugar content because it can lead to higher inflammatory markers for a longer period.

 

Massage

Massage is another efficient ally against muscle soreness, whether it’s self-massage or massage performed by a certified specialist.

There are a lot of massage techniques to ease the pain in your muscles and one of them is by using a foam roll or a massage stick for your sore spots.

 

Hot and cold treatment

Heat is a good way to increase blood circulation and reduce inflammation in the damaged areas of your body. In case of workout, it is recommended between training sessions.

Cold is also used to take away the soreness and reduce inflammation and is preferred by many people, instead of the heat therapy. However, not everyone can resist the shock of an ice bath so a simpler method would be using gel packs which can be kept in the freezer and applied on the sore areas when necessary.

 

Just keep moving

Moving may not be the first thing on your mind when experiencing sore muscles but maybe it should be.  This activity helps your blood oxygenate and move through your body, reaching your muscles and helping them recover.

It is also an efficient way to prevent muscle cramps and stiffness.