Recovering from Soreness Post-workout
When you work out, especially when you are strength training or using muscles that you haven’t used in a while, you are creating micro tears in your muscles, so that when they recover, those muscles are getting stronger and bigger.
Soreness begins 1-2 days after your workout session and it is called “Delayed On-set Muscle Soreness” or DOMS. Being sore actually means that you are doing something right and that your fitness is progressing!
DOMS creates temporary inflammation to your post workout muscle, that’s why you usually start to feel sore a couple days after your workout, especially if it was a leg day! But don’t worry, the soreness will usually go away after 48 hours.
If you are experiencing severe muscle pain that is inhibiting you from doing any sort of physical activity and have difficulty breathing, a fever or stiff neck, then you most likely have an injury and need to go seek medical attention.
Here are 6 tips to help your body recover from soreness after workouts!
Epsom salt bath
Taking a hot bath will help increase blood circulation and loosen any tight muscles after a strenuous workout. Epsom salts contain magnesium which helps widen your blood vessels, allowing blood flow to increase even more to help with recovery.
Icing or heating
Using an ice pack or a heat pack on the areas of soreness can help decrease the pain experienced with sore muscles. If there is swelling, apply an ice pack to decrease the inflammation, but if there isn’t, use a heat pack to increase blood flow.
Massage
Honestly who doesn’t like a good massage? Getting a massage can help with loosening up those tight muscles and helping your body relax.
Keep moving!
Many people ask if they can keep working out when they are sore. The answer is yes! I’m not telling you to go do 100 pushups and deadlift 250lbs, but doing low impact cardio like walking, swimming or even riding can help with recovery due to the increase in blood flow when you are being active.
Stretch
Before a workout, you want to make sure that your muscles are warmed up by doing a few minutes or cardiovascular exercises to warm up your joints and your body. You need to do the same after a workout! Stretching for 5-10 minutes after a workout can drastically decrease the chance of having sore muscles!
Eating healthy
Eating highly nutritious foods can fuel your body to speed up the recovery process after working out. Eating the right foods can also help with decreasing the amount of time that you experience soreness! Make sure to feel your body with protein, greens, vitamin C and vitamin E and foods that have excellent anti-inflammatory components!
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