Undoubtedly, exercise brings many benefits to our lives – high body flexibility and mobility, muscle growth, increased endurance, overall well-being, etc. However, all of these positive effects are tainted with one unpleasant side effect of exercise: different intensities of muscle pain. Beginners usually experience pain after the first exercise, but someone more experienced will only have pain after high-energy and weight-lifting exercise. Sometimes, the pain disappears quickly, while sometimes it can exist for several days before it leaves you. Muscle pain shows up due to several reasons such as carrying unbearable weight, etc. Here is how to relieve muscle pain.
Get proper rest and eat the right food
It might sound corny, but taking a break for some days is more useful than looking for urgent solutions. Get enough sleep and stay away from any strenuous activity. Also, get the right nutrition. Your muscle tissues need to be restored; proteins and carbohydrates are very essential. They provide amino acids for healing the microcracks and glycogen respectively. Also, drink enough water. This will help eliminate toxins from your body and replenish the water balance in the body. You can also take juices of various berries.
Take a shower
It is proper that you take a contrast shower after exercise. You just have to wash your body with hot and cold water with a hard washcloth and the pain will reduce. If you have an injury anywhere, cold compress it or apply dry ice. If the pain persists, you can take a hot bath. Add some sea salt to the hot bath, it increases blood flow and stimulates the healing process. Steam especially is a good remedy for pain since ancient times, because it easily removes the lactic acid stored in the muscles during training.
Swim and get a body massage
It is not by accident that good fitness centers have a pool on their premises. Swimming helps to expand blood vessels and stimulate blood flow. To swim, you will need a good and comfortable swimsuit. You could read about fashion companies on collected.reviews to see if they have the right swimsuit for you as well as the experience of other people that have patronized them. This way, your body can quickly cope with the lactic acid accumulated in your muscles. Another way to relieve muscle pain is to get a body massage, which blends perfectly with swimming. A good body massage terminates muscle clamps, increases the elasticity of your muscles, relieves them of stiffness, and promotes lymph. If you cannot get a good massage therapist, use a massage roller. You can read about Dokodemo to see if they have traditional Japanese products that you can use for your massage that will help you relieve muscle pains quicker.
Clear your head of worries
Your mental health is also important in getting relief from soreness of the muscles after a workout session. You cannot have a busy mind and be expecting to get healed magically. From the inside, let your body relax and find peace. If you are worried, depressed, angry, envious, etc. you are only festering your wounds. If you are always in sore moods as you workout, you will likely battle with pain when you are done. be of a clear mind during your workout sessions. If you are in a good mental state, you are likely to be in a better physical state too.
Do some light stretching
Stretching releases some stiffness from your muscles and increases your range of movement. It makes you feel better, even though it is not healing your muscles. However, ensure your stretching is as light as possible. You do not want to cause extra pain for yourself. Overstretching the muscle when it feels stiff will make the muscles tighter because your body will be trying to resist it. Stretch the part of the body in question until it feels tight but not to the point of becoming unbearable.
Do some light movements
You will not be able to work out as you want during the period of the muscle pain, but you should not just render yourself immobile either. Do not decide that you are sore and will not leave your bed – that is the worst thing to do. You do not have to go back to your regular workout but engage in the gentle activity. You can go for a walk, hop on a bike, do some light strength training, etc. Doing such will make the blood flow directly into the painful muscles and cause them to heal quickly.
Don’t work out beyond your capacity
Besides the fact that when you are likely to experience muscle pain when you just start exercising, lifting weights that are too heavy for you or doing exercises for longer periods without resting can cause severe muscle pain. You have to understand that it is what you do consistently that produces results, not what you do in a day. As such, you cannot do all the exercises meant for a lifetime in a day. You have to take it easy with yourself.
Don’t exercise when you are not in the right body frame
Putting a weak body to work will only make it weaker. It is good that you are consistent with your exercise, but do not force yourself on days you feel sick or your body signals to rest. Working out is meant to be a source of good health and physical fitness, not death. You have to learn how to let go of days you cannot do anything and not beat yourself up for it. Research even shows that having a lazy day helps to make you well rested and keeps you productive. When you get better, you can continue your exercise.
Get an instructor to work with you
You should not shy away from help when you need it. You might need someone to put you through some exercise techniques so that it will be easier and less stressful for you to practice on your own. You can get an instructor at the gym or ask one of your friends at the gym to help you out. If you have formed good relationships with those you met at the gym, getting someone to teach you should not be a problem. You should also remember to protect yourself from the virus.
