5 Effective Remedies To Reduce Body Soreness

If yesterday’s workout is making your muscles scream today, take it as a good sign. You most likely have "delayed onset muscle soreness" (DOMS), and it means you worked hard enough to create tiny tears in your muscle fibers.

It can happen when you bump up your workout intensity, frequency, or length, or when you try a new activity. As your muscles heal, they’ll get bigger and stronger, paving the way to the next level of fitness.

The DOMS usually kicks in 12 to 24 hours after a tough workout and peaks between 24 to 72 hours. The soreness will go away in a few days. In the meantime, these tricks may help ease the pain.

# Keep moving

You may want to cling to the sofa while your muscles recover, but moving your body could make you feel better. The trick is to do something light and gentle.

One of the best ways to reduce muscle soreness is to get them moving. You can do this through light cardio or active recovery, which includes stretching, foam rolling or yoga.

# Rest and recover. Some R&R is good, too

“Rest days are crucial to recover”

Taking a day off gives your body a chance to repair itself and replenishes your energy. Experts says the second day after an intense workout can be the toughest. So they suggests doing light exercise the day after a heavy workout, then taking off the next day.

It's essential to give your body enough time spent not training to replenish your energy (glycogen) stores and allow your damaged muscles to recover. Otherwise, your performance will be compromised and you may experience chronic muscle soreness and pain.

# Apply heat (carefully)

If your muscles still ache after 48 hours, try heat. It can stimulate blood flow to your muscles to ease tightness and help them feel better. Experts says try a warm (not hot) towel or heating pad. But be careful. It can cause burns, along with further inflaming muscles.

When exercise is very intense, there may not be enough blood flow to eliminate all the chemicals. It is the buildup of chemicals (for example, lactic acid) that cause muscle ache. Because the blood supply helps eliminate these chemicals, use heat to help sore muscles after exercise.

Avoid direct contact with any heating device.

# Get a massage

It can relieve muscle tension, boost blood flow, and increase the range of motion in your joints, expert says. It’s also a great mood-lifter.

When your muscles are sore, a gentle massage is best. Choose one that uses light pressure, like a Swedish massage, which experts says is better for recovery than a deep-tissue massage. Or try tender-point acupressure: A massage therapist applies pressure and holds it directly on the tender areas.

Massage to sore muscles could increase discharge from other low-threshold sensory fibers and block pain sensation temporarily1; however, the massage in our study was performed before soreness occurred. Cardinal signs of acute inflammation include redness, heat, swelling, pain, and impairment of function.

# Take an anti-inflammatory

Stretch-induced muscle injuries or strains, muscle contusions and delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) are common muscle problems in athletes. Anti-inflammatory treatment is often used for the pain and disability associated with these injuries.