Muscle pain that appears some time after training is a very common occurrence. It occurs especially often among beginners, people who take long breaks between classes and athletes who expose themselves to unusual loads.
Causes of muscle pain after exercise
Pain after sports that occurs the next day indicates that you worked hard and gave a noticeable load to your muscles. Heavy and intense workouts cause muscle fiber damage. As a result, microscopic tears and cracks form, which become inflamed and cause pain. Damaged fibers encourage the body to launch intensive repair processes. In this case, active synthesis of protein occurs - the main building material for tissues. It repairs damage, making muscles stronger and more resilient. As a result, the pain goes away quite quickly and the body becomes more resilient.
How to reduce pain after exercise
In order not to subsequently struggle with severe pain after training, it must be carried out correctly. It will significantly reduce the intensity of pain, preparing the muscles for the upcoming loads. The best way to cope with this is a light one that warms up the body. During the workout itself, try to consume more water and alternate between more intense and less intense exercise. Equally important is the correct completion of the lesson. The best option for this purpose they will become, which direct blood flow to the muscles and relax them.
Hi people! Today we'll talk about pain. No, not about mental pain, but about muscle pain. If you train in the gym, muscle pain is already something familiar to you. Personally, I'm used to it and don't mind it special attention for pain in the leg muscles after squats, for chest pain after bench presses, etc. But I remember my first training session.
The fact that the next morning I was sore all over is not even discussed. After the workout itself, my hands were just shaking like an alcoholic. The pain did not go away throughout the week. Looks like I overdid it with the load.
But situations are different and the pain itself has a different nature and the reason for its occurrence. Sometimes ordinary ointments, so to speak standard methods, do not help. Sometimes you need the help of a specialist. The appearance of painful sensations after intense training for 1-3 days is quite normal.
But there are situations when this pain interferes with the normal flow of life and becomes simply unbearable. Many athletes wonder when muscles hurt after training, how to relieve pain? Do I need to see a doctor? We will discuss these questions in this article! So - let's get to work...
First, let's look at the causes of pain in the muscles:
After physical activity Tears and microcracks appear in muscle tissue, requiring time to recover. This has a positive effect on the activation of the body’s defense reactions, hormone secretion and muscle growth. This pain often occurs after the first workout and goes away after 3-4 sessions.
These are not all the reasons, of course there are many more. But these are the main ones. Having understood them, let's now look at the most effective methods for relieving muscle pain after exercise.
How to reduce pain
WATER TREATMENTS. A contrast shower lasting 10-15 minutes after intense training effectively reduces pain and relaxes muscle tissue. A warm bath with sea salt followed by a douche of cold water is also suitable.
Bath with alternating temperatures. Just don’t forget about replenishing lost fluid. You can find out which bathhouse is best to choose.
Swimming in a pool of cool water for 15 minutes is an excellent remedy for muscle pain. Reducing discomfort occurs due to vasodilation and improved blood circulation. Many people choose this method and use it constantly.
MASSAGE. It is better to contact a professional massage therapist and get complete relaxation. If this is not possible, you can do the massage yourself. Gently and smoothly work the muscles, starting from the end, moving upward, do not make sudden movements.
You can start with light pressing and kneading the muscles, and finish with rubbing. Use a special massage oil with a warming effect. You can add a few drops of lavender, peppermint or sage essential oil. You can also use special massage devices, rollers, that improve blood circulation.
Do not stop if the massage causes pain and discomfort. By the end of the procedure, you will feel much better, because massage is one of the most effective ways to relieve pain.
COMPRESSES. Use cold compresses, especially if there is bruising or swelling. You can apply an ice pack, but for no more than 20 minutes. You can also apply a heating pad or use a warming cream.
GENERAL ACTIVITY. Do a warm-up to warm up your muscles and stretch. You can do regular walking. The more you work your muscles, the faster your sensations will return to normal.
DRINK PLENTY. Helps remove metabolic products faster and reduce pain. About whether you should drink water after a workout
REST. If you overdo it during a workout, take a few days off. This will help restore muscles and gain strength before the next training session.
Medications
If the pain is too severe and the above methods do not help, you can use pharmaceutical products:
OINTMENTS AND CREAMS. Products for external use are excellent for muscle pain in short time. They are cooling, warming and pain relieving. For swelling, it is better to use cooling agents, and for bruises and injuries, painkillers, but in no case warming ones.
Ointments and creams also help increase skin elasticity, improve blood flow, get rid of metabolic products and restore metabolism. The discomfort goes away quickly. The most popular and effective means external use:
- Fastum-gel.
- Capsicam.
- Troxevasin.
- Dolobene.
- Finalgon.
- Voltaren.
PILLS. Anti-inflammatory, non-steroidal painkillers can relieve pain quickly and for a long time. But their use should not become the main way to eliminate pain, because it is harmful internal organs and the body as a whole. They can also inhibit muscle recovery processes. The safest drugs for pain relief:
- Aspirin.
- Nurofen.
- Ibuprofen.
If after three days the muscle pain does not go away, or even gets worse, you should visit a doctor. You may have sprained or damaged your ligaments, or damaged your joints.
Prevention
If you don’t want to constantly look for the answer to the question of how to get rid of pain after training, try to prevent it. Main methods of prevention:
- The key to a healthy lifestyle and painless recovery after physical activity is to eat more protein foods that can cover the amount of protein spent during training, and also do not forget about fats and carbohydrates. Their daily norm is 20 and 30%, respectively.
- Don't forget to follow daily norm fluid intake during the day, as well as replenishing losses during training. This prevents toxins from settling and removes waste from the muscles faster. You can add electrolytes to the water to help restore the water-salt balance.
- When doing strength training, do not neglect cardio training. They are helping rapid recovery muscles, saturating the blood with oxygen and clearing lactic acid.
- Take protein shakes after workouts, as well as supplements rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids and glutamine. About what to drink for good growth muscles -
- Use complex vitamins, as well as preparations with magnesium, saturate the body with useful substances, increasing the body’s defenses, as well as helping muscle regeneration. Magnesium helps prevent cramps and pain.
- Taking antioxidants (retinol, tocopherol, flavonoids) in preparations and in natural products - cherries, grapes, dried fruits, blue cabbage.
- Eat foods that help relieve muscle pain. These include watermelons, black currants, pomegranates, cucumbers, parsley, and ginger. Decoctions of licorice, linden, chamomile and rosehip are very useful.
- Don’t forget about warming up your muscles before training. Loads also need to be increased gradually. The duration of physical activity without a break should not exceed 1 hour, and preferably 45 minutes. This is due to increased levels of cortisol in the blood during prolonged exercise.
- The body needs recovery time to normalize all physiological processes, to normalize the secretion of hormones and muscle regeneration. Sleep at least 6-8 hours a day. If possible, taking a nap during the day will also be helpful.
Use tips on how to relieve pain after exercise and how to prevent it, and it will be much easier for you to achieve your goals. But in any case, if the pain is abnormal, be sure to go to the doctor, even if you really don’t want to go there. This is only your health and no one will take care of it except you.
That's all for me - stay healthy, friends! See you again!
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Most people who have just started playing sports complain of muscle pain. You can avoid this unpleasant phenomenon if you dose your loads, don’t forget about warming up, and follow the trainer’s recommendations.
A beautiful body that you are not ashamed to show off in a swimsuit or a tight-fitting outfit is the goal of many people who take care of themselves. But diets alone cannot achieve good results, because in this case, after losing weight, you can be left with saggy skin and weak muscles. Therefore, sport becomes an integral part of life. Often, beginners in this business and even pros have sore legs after training, tingling arm or abdominal muscles, and other unpleasant consequences.
Exist different opinions concerning the nature of pain. It is worth debunking some myths and misconceptions so as not to harm the body yourself. Painful sensations plague people who have exercised a little more intensely than usual or have taken a long break between exercises. This condition is explained by sore throat due to small tears in the muscle fibers and inflammation in them.
By doing physical exercise regularly and gradually, you can avoid pain.
The cause of delayed muscle pain is microtrauma, as well as increased production of pain mediators. After several workouts, muscle discomfort will subside, because the human body quickly adapts to a new mode of operation. The more and more often an athlete trains, the less often he will be bothered by muscle pain.
There are other, more serious factors that require urgent medical care. In such cases, pathological processes can develop in the body, leading to muscle pain. The following symptoms indicate problems with human health:
- swelling or redness appears in the area where the pain occurred;
- pain does not go away within a week;
- discomfort is felt inside the muscles and joints;
- pain occurs completely unexpectedly.
If pain of this kind appears after training, then physical activity is stopped until its causes are determined. Athletes for quick removal Acute muscle pain is treated in a variety of proven ways.
Severe muscle discomfort may be present after the first or second workout. During this time, the fabrics adapt to the athlete's new requirements. By the third or fourth workout, the athlete will feel only mild soreness. But if the pain does not subside, then you need to pay attention to:
- warm-up;
- exercise technique;
- cool down;
- post-workout nutrition.
Why do muscles start to hurt?
Before you start doing anything about muscle pain, you need to understand why it occurs after exercise. There are several reasons for this:
- accumulation of lactic acid;
- not warmed up muscles;
- damage or injury.
Lactic acid
After any physical exercise Lactic acid or lactate accumulates in the muscles. It is a product of the breakdown of glucose in muscle tissue. During exercise, it accumulates in the muscles due to the fact that there is a deficiency of oxygen necessary for the breakdown of lactate into carbon dioxide and water. The more intense and longer the workout, the more lactic acid will accumulate. Later, when the oxygen balance is restored, it enters metabolism and gradually degrades.
Lactic acid causes pain and muscle discomfort for 4-5 days, and sometimes longer.
During moderate-intensity training, slight muscle pain, fatigue and malaise occur. Feeling muscle pain is a completely natural condition if the pain is moderate in nature and if it goes away within a few hours. This happens for one simple reason: lactic acid is washed out with the blood through the liver and from time to time the muscles are restored.
Unwarmed muscles are a problem for lazy or inexperienced athletes. Before any physical activity, it is necessary to prepare the muscles, and for this you need to warm up for 15-20 minutes. Otherwise, a sharp muscle strain occurs, and the athlete pays for this with pain that does not go away for at least 3-4 days.
Microfractures
Damage to muscle tissue is a rare occurrence, but it should not be forgotten. If a beginner immediately runs a kilometer sprint or squats with an excessive weight, then he is guaranteed a muscle injury. The thing is that the capabilities of the muscles are relatively limited; they need to be developed gradually. The most common injuries are severe muscle bruising, muscle fiber or ligament rupture. Such injuries hurt a lot and take a long time to heal.
Often the pain lasts for a long time and does not go away even after several days.
This type of pain can be a sign of muscle fiber rupture. Muscle soreness often occurs due to the fact that the muscles were not warmed up or warmed up, or careless movements were made during training, which led to overstretching of the fibers and their rupture.
Even in fitness, you can encounter the problem of micro-tears. Therefore, there should be no sudden movements during classes. Professional athletes never neglect warming up and devote a lot of time to this part of their training, which cannot be said about amateurs. Increased blood circulation occurs during warm-up. The muscle fibers are warmed up, they are ready to withstand the greatest load. Not only the muscles, but the entire body begins to work more intensely.
Delayed onset of pain
It happens that muscle pain appears only 2 or even 3 days after training. The reason for this is microtrauma of muscle fibers. But there is no need to be scared.
Often muscle injuries sustained after physical activity, stimulate the body not only to activate its own protective mechanisms, but also provokes an increase in the concentration of certain hormones for the rapid regeneration of muscle tissue, as well as their cleansing of toxins. As a result, after 3-4 days the pain subsides. To avoid this, experts recommend permanent changes in the load and intensity of training.
Increased muscle reactivity
This situation is possible due to increased sensitivity of nerve endings, intense stress on muscles and changes in the biobalance of salts and fluids. In other words, due to water-salt imbalance. But such processes can cause both muscle pain and can provoke a cramp in the calf area. Prevention of this is to warm up before and after training and systematically replenish the water deficit during the period of exercise.
Fatigue
With a constant feeling of muscle weakness, acute pain and general poor health, one can easily assume general exhaustion of the body, that is, this is possible if a person has overtrained. Biochemistry explains this condition by an imbalance of nitrogen, as well as the loss of a larger amount of protein in comparison with what entered the body.
Why shouldn't you ignore such signs? It's all about the consequences. After all, if such symptoms do not go away, this ultimately leads to problems with the immune system, hormonal imbalances in women, and even, possibly, infertility.
Full range of motion exercises
Exercises such as deep squats, deadlifts with completely straight legs, and horizontal barbell presses can not only lead to muscle strain, but they also often result in stress being placed in areas where it often does not exist. Pain can be reduced by choosing loads with incomplete amplitude.
Types of muscle pain
When starting any body training for the first time, a person forces all those muscle groups that are not loaded in ordinary life to actively move. The body's natural reaction to unusual stress is pain. If it is absent even after a few days, the training is not intense enough. And this is where the main debate begins that muscle pain should be achieved at any cost. Such a statement is dangerous.
Main types of muscle pain:
- traumatic;
- natural;
- lagging.
Traumatic pain
Often, beginners enthusiastically start training without observing basic safety precautions. They receive pain caused by injury to muscles, tendons, and soft tissues. This has nothing to do with achieving high athletic results.
Muscle pain caused by injury after exercise is often accompanied by swelling and redness of certain areas of the body, poor health, and nausea.
Every movement becomes unbearable. The pain is aching and is felt constantly. Any load only increases discomfort. In this condition, the athlete has to temporarily stop training.
If a tendon or muscle rupture occurs, surgical intervention will be required. The recovery period after such an incident will close the doors of the gym for a long time. Only strict adherence to the rules, dosing of loads, and a gradual increase in the intensity of exercise will help to avoid unpleasant consequences.
Moderate natural pain
During high-quality training, micro-tears occur in the muscles. Moderate and fairly easily tolerated muscle pain occurs after exercise. It indicates that a person has worked correctly and effectively. Usually, the discomfort goes away within a few days for beginners, and experienced athletes do not feel pain after just a day.
This type also includes pain caused by excess lactic acid in the muscles. Lactic acid explains the burning sensation in muscle fibers during exercise, but not the next day.
Such pain is natural and leads to muscle growth and fat burning. Unpleasant sensations do not harm the body or its functioning. When the body adapts to new loads, the pain stops.
Lagging pain
When the intensity of the load increases or the program changes, delayed pain occurs. The soreness is felt on the 2-3rd day, the muscle fibers cannot completely contract. The condition returns to normal after 1-4 days, and beginners may feel this pain for a week.
Lingering pain should not be a reason to stop exercising. It is recommended to perform your complex, but reduce the load by half. The goal of training for such pain is to restore muscle activity and adapt to a new program.
If your muscles hurt badly, you should a little rest. It is recommended to perform exercises that create stress for other - non-injured muscle groups. The best assistant in such a situation will be a qualified trainer.
How to get rid of muscle pain without drugs
Muscle pain is an integral part of tissue growth and strengthening. But there is no need to experience unpleasant sensations all the time. For most experienced athletes and people who have been training in gyms for years, muscle pain is a rare and short-term phenomenon. Their muscles are so trained that they adapt to changes in loads very quickly. Regular and high-quality training will give results without exhausting body pain.
Many novice athletes, and just people who are faced with physical activity, are concerned about the question of how to relieve muscle pain. Several methods have been developed thanks to which the pain gradually decreases and disappears completely:
- take a bath adding sea salt to it;
- apply warming massage and compresses;
- You shouldn’t completely exclude physical exercise;
- absorb a large number of water;
Muscle pain after training, which periodically comes to everyone who wants to change their body into better side- a normal phenomenon. But it is important to know how you can alleviate the condition and reduce discomfort.
Warm-up
An important part of the workout is the warm-up and cool-down with stretching of all muscle groups. Prepared and heated tissues are less injured and are 50% less likely to experience pain.
The first and main rule of any physical activity is a proper ten-minute warm-up. Even pros with many years of experience adhere to it, because it helps to avoid not only pain after training, but also various injuries, bruises or ruptures during it. But without a warm-up, it can be difficult to even get out of bed the next day.
To warm up, you can do the exercises from the class, but without weights (or at a slower speed if you are jogging). When training your thighs, buttocks and calves, be sure to pay attention to your knees and feet - they take on most of the physical load. If you are going to train the muscles of the upper body, then do not forget about the elbows, shoulders and back.
Correct exercise technique and cool down
As for the technique of performing exercises, no one can tell you about it better than a personal trainer. Each of them can be adjusted to suit the characteristics of the athlete’s body. If you don’t have the opportunity to work with a specialist, then read the general rules before training.
Not only the warm-up is important, but also the cool-down. It will relax not only the muscles of the body, but also the heart, which works hard during physical activity, and will also help adapt the joints. Cool down can be done in the form of stretching, slow walking or jumping rope.
Even during intense muscle pain after exercise, a person should perform light exercises. You can reduce the level of stress for tired muscles a little, but daily exercise will improve blood flow to muscle tissue, reduce muscle soreness, and also provide normal amounts of nutrients for recovery.
Moderate cardio training will reduce pain in the lower part of the body, and yoga and push-ups will reduce pain in the upper part. Muscle tissue recovers faster if, in addition to strength training, you add several cardio workouts per week.
The workout should last no more than 45 minutes for beginners, and no more than an hour for others.
Exercises should be alternated depending on the degree of difficulty and load on the body. In addition, constant grueling exercises often lead to injuries and overextension, when it is no longer possible to cope with conventional methods without medical intervention.
Training times and cycles
It is necessary to adhere to the training regimen, as well as the time of active exercise. The optimal duration is from 45 minutes to 1 hour. After this time, the level of the stress hormone cortisol increases and testosterone decreases. It is important to alternate exercises with heavy weights or a number of approaches with low loads.
Massage
Even a self-massage can quickly relieve muscle pain and warm up the muscles. The affected area is thoroughly kneaded for better blood flow and improved lymph movement. Has an excellent warming effect vegetable oil with the addition of a few drops of lavender or sage essential oil. There are special massage rollers on sale that need to be rolled for about 15 minutes on painful areas.
Ask someone to stretch the necessary muscles for 20-30 minutes.
If this is not possible, do self-massage. Movements should be careful and soft, because sore muscles are very sensitive after training. It is best to perform it with stroking and kneading movements using body oil or cream.
The purpose of the massage is to thoroughly relax and warm up the muscles. The duration of the procedure is 10-15 minutes.
Water procedures
After visiting the gym and intense training, water is a great relaxation and pain reliever. This could be a contrast shower, which stimulates the functioning of blood vessels. Swimming in a pool or open water is recommended. Moreover, the benefits noted were cold water. Baths and steam rooms are an excellent treatment for sore throat. The hot-cold combination is effective for strained muscles.
The duration of the contrast shower is more than 10 minutes. Instead, you can take a warm bath with sea salt (up to 20 minutes), and then rinse with cold water.
Russian bath or sauna
You should not deny yourself the pleasure of going to a Russian bathhouse or sauna. They are a wonderful example of a combination of high and low temperatures, which, together with plenty of drinking, will perfectly help reduce muscle soreness. Therefore, if there is an opportunity to resort to this method immediately after training, then you should not miss it.
Swimming in cool water
If you go swimming after serious exercise, this will significantly reduce your soreness. Swimming classes are the most effective way eliminating muscle soreness, which professional athletes have long adopted. A decrease in pain intensity occurs due to the normalization of blood flow and vasodilation. To achieve this effect, it is enough to spend 15-20 minutes in the pool.
Warm water
The most effective way to help get rid of muscle pain is relaxation. Warm water will help your muscles release tension faster. Run a bath, add a few drops of soothing lavender oil or rose petals, pour a few tablespoons of bathing salts into it, and you can also add foam.
It is enough to spend 2-3 hours in warm water to experience a significant reduction in pain.
To better relax your muscles and relax, you can spend time in the bath with warm tea or cocoa and listen to calm music. It is better to do relaxing water treatments before bed so as not to strain your muscles. The next morning the condition will noticeably improve, and if the pain was insignificant, then it will go away completely.
Stretching or yoga
Stretching or yoga will help cope with discomfort in muscle tissue after exercise, because such procedures stretch the muscles and relieve their tension, and also help to better nourish them with blood.
Do a short warm-up to prepare your body, and then spend half an hour slowly and gently stretching or doing various poses. When the exercises are completed, be sure to do a cool-down. This could be jumping or squatting at a slow pace.
If the muscles hurt severely, and the discomfort does not go away even after relaxing procedures, contact a traumatology department or a doctor, because the problem may be injuries or serious sprains, which only a specialist can handle. Normally, the pain should go away within 5-6 days, but if this does not happen for longer than 2 weeks, go to the hospital.
Proper nutrition
In terms of diet and drinking regimen, close attention should be paid to protein and water consumption rates. It is important to remember that the amount of protein expended must correspond to its intake.
Often, about 2 g of protein per 1 kg of body weight is required to restore the body after exercise. If we talk about water, its norm is calculated by multiplying a person’s weight (in kg) by 40 ml of liquid.
Water helps eliminate toxins and restore muscles.
Don't forget about beneficial supplements such as fatty acids. Flaxseed and fish oil are rich in these substances. Fatty acids not only reduce inflammation in the muscles, but also increase immunity. Antioxidants are no less important; they help the body deal with waste products. Various berries and fresh vegetables of red, orange and purple colors are saturated with such substances.
There are products that can reduce pain after vigorous exercise. Fresh watermelon juice has a particularly effective anti-pain effect. Usually it is drunk an hour before and after classes. The following exhibit similar properties:
- blueberry;
- black currant;
- blackberry.
The amount of protein that athletes consume during training should correspond to the amount consumed in food.
A person should drink at least two liters per day clean water, because its deficiency leads to dehydration and muscles quickly get tired. Water removes various toxins that have accumulated in the body during the day.
Ointments for external use
Treatment of pain with medications with essential oils and other active ingredients can be combined with massage. Such drugs act on nerve receptors, dulling pain after exercise.
It is worth resorting to this option at times when it is not possible to engage in other procedures, and that is why this method is considered a method for the lazy. The assortment of pharmacies is rich in ointments based on herbal extracts, essential oils, as well as anti-inflammatory creams. In addition, the composition of such products often includes active substances and special components to influence pain receptors.
Timely rest
If muscle pain bothers you frequently, you need to give your body a little rest. Taking a break between workouts for a while will help relax tense muscles and bring them back to normal faster. You need to follow your daily routine and go to bed on time. After all, only during deep sleep the body produces those chemical substances, which restore muscle tissue.
If the muscle was unable to repair its damaged tissue in time, then the next trip to the gym can have extremely negative consequences.
With each such activity, a person approaches physical exhaustion. Immunity decreases, and along with it inflammation appears in the joints.
Tendons and joint tissues are very easily injured in such cases. Therefore, doctors and professional athletes recommend that if you experience severe pain, you should stop training for several weeks and be sure to consult a doctor.
You need to sleep 7-8 hours. Lack of sleep causes cortisol levels to rise. As a result, recovery processes deteriorate and the risk of muscle injuries increases.
How to get rid of pain with medications
After training, various pains may occur. But there are types of pain that will go away on their own, and there are pains that require urgent treatment. These are the ones you need to focus your attention on:
- feeling of pain inside the joint;
- pain lasts more than one week;
- increasing muscle pain every day;
- pain accompanied by crunching in the joints;
- in addition to pain, there is swelling or redness on the skin;
- sharp shooting pain.
Special herbal ointments and creams will help relieve muscle pain. The local action of external agents reduces the risk of negative consequences after training. A small concentration of the active substance in ointments does not bring any side effects, but in case of severe pain such products do not work well.
It is better to use local drugs with an irritating effect in cases of severe pain, including Capsicam. Severe pain is relieved by analgesics. Menthol also gives a quick effect. It cools the nerve endings, thereby reducing pain. Using menthol ointment before doing exercises significantly reduces the risk of developing muscle tissue damage. Pain can be eliminated using Nise gel or pepper tincture.
In addition to pain, anti-inflammatory drugs eliminate the inflammatory process and reduce swelling.
Among these drugs are Diclofenac or Ketorolac. These non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs only temporarily alleviate the condition, but in the future they can slow down the healing process and restoration of muscle tissue. Thanks to these medications, muscle inflammation will be relieved, as well as inflammation in the joints, and swelling will gradually disappear.
You may need to consult a doctor. He will prescribe complex exercises and prescribe physiotherapeutic treatment - electrophoresis with novocaine, ultraviolet treatment.
You may encounter a disease such as myositis after training. This is inflammation of one or more muscles. With this disease, hard nodules form inside the muscle tissue. In this case, treatment can be carried out at home. You need to take cabbage leaves, rub them with laundry soap (soap) and sprinkle baking soda on top. Then apply to the sore spot and secure with a warm bandage.
An ointment made from yolk, apple cider vinegar (two teaspoons), and turpentine (one teaspoon) helps well. The ingredients are thoroughly mixed and applied to the affected area overnight, covered with a warm bandage. If the neck muscles are damaged, use folk remedy- bay oil. It is sold at any pharmacy. The recipe is simple: take ten drops and add them to one liter warm water, then dip a towel into the solution, wring it out and apply it to the forehead. Within 10-15 minutes, the pain will stop.
When discomfort is of non-muscular origin
Sometimes not only muscles, but also other parts of the body hurt, and this is more dangerous. Discomfort may appear in bones and joints. Some athletes have lower back, headache or heart pain the next day after training.
Pain in bones and joints
During exercise, bones and joints receive a load several times greater than that which falls on the muscles. And hard tissues are less elastic, so they are easier to damage.
Incorrect equipment contributes to poor health. When, while running, an athlete wears ordinary sneakers rather than special sneakers, the ankle hurts greatly. For activities that involve running or jumping, you need special shoes. You should choose models with a sole that will absorb shock. This will help avoid intense stress on the feet and subsequent discomfort.
The same goes for sportswear. When performing squats, deadlifts or other heavy exercises, we must not forget about a special belt, thanks to which the lower back will be protected. It correctly distributes the load and prevents the spine from bending in unwanted places.
Joints and bones suffer greatly without warming up, correct technique exercises and cool-downs.
Remember that it is necessary to knead and knead the supporting parts of the body, namely: feet, knees, elbows, hands, shoulder girdle, lower back and spine.
Often joints in people prone to arthritis or other hard tissue diseases. To avoid sudden attacks of pain, consult a doctor before starting exercise and monitor your health condition.
Lower back pain
The lower back supports the entire pelvic girdle and lower limbs, so after improper training she may be sick. The consequences of such discomfort in the future may be the development of radiculitis, osteochondrosis and pinched nerves.
To avoid such unpleasant consequences, remember that the lower back during heavy loads should always be protected with a special belt, which is sold in sports stores. It is also important to choose the right load weight. Do not grab heavy barbells and dumbbells unless you have only handled light weights before.
Increase your body loads gradually.
If the next day after training your lower back hurts, but there is no acute discomfort, then go to bed for a short period of time with a warm heating pad and drink plenty of fluids. Until the pain completely disappears, it is better to forget about exercise. But if on the second day or immediately after physical activity the discomfort is acute, then immediately contact a traumatology department or a surgeon, because this may be a signal of lower back damage.
Heartache
Many athletes, especially runners, are plagued by heart pain. This organ is made up of muscles and blood vessels, so it is easy to guess the causes of the malaise. If loads have been introduced recently, the heart hurts because its muscles pass more blood per unit of time and grow. Over time, this discomfort will pass.
But if it’s about the vessels, then it’s more complicated. The heart pumps blood through hollow tubes, creating pressure in them. Normally in humans it is regulated by the nervous system, but with inappropriate physical activity the vessels receive too much stress.
To avoid heart pain before starting training, consult a cardiologist to make sure that the organ is healthy and can withstand stress. But prevention doesn't end there. To protect your heart, you need to breathe properly during exercise, because this will help normalize blood pressure and flow.
Always inhale into your right leg when running or in the relaxation phase when doing exercises. Exhalation should occur on the left leg or the muscle contraction phase.
Contact a cardiologist if your heart does not stop hurting after 5-6 days without exercise or the discomfort is acute. Be sure to completely stop exercising until the organ’s condition returns to normal.
Headache
Sometimes after training your head starts to hurt. There are several direct and indirect reasons for the appearance of such discomfort.
The direct cause of headaches is high blood pressure. If there was no cool-down, proper breathing and technique during exercise, then it will not return to normal for a long time. In the brain there is a pressure center - the hypothalamus, which determines this indicator in the blood passing through it. It is because of this small organ that the head begins to hurt first.
It is almost impossible to fight hypertension at home. Only medications selected by a specialist can remove its symptoms.
There are also indirect causes of headaches. If you have a neck injury or sprain, the next day after training your head will experience discomfort due to decreased blood flow. In a similar way headache cause damage to the back and shoulder girdle.
To prevent your head from experiencing acute discomfort during exercise, adapt the vessels before it begins. This will help:
- slow bends towards the toes;
- turns the body in different planes;
- jumping rope or breathing practice.
It is believed that moderate muscle soreness is a sign of natural muscle growth, but today it is possible to effectively increase muscle mass absolutely painlessly. If you follow all the recommendations for preventing pain after training, then you can quite successfully visit the gym.
Many people can boast of strong muscles that are capable of rapid adaptation and recovery, so pain does not bother them. The absence of pain in such cases does not mean weak training.
Serious damage to muscle tissue and its tears require emergency medical attention and sometimes surgery, so you need to be extremely careful during each workout so as not to injure the muscles. Regular exercise will not only relieve pain, but also give a person health and stamina.
You can only deal with minor discomfort on your own.
If your muscles or lower back hurt, a relaxing warm bath with essential oil tea rose. Pain in the heart will be relieved by tea with motherwort or rose hips, prolonged stretching with slow breathing. Chamomile decoction, quiet classical music and good sleep will help with headaches. But if the discomfort is acute, then consult a doctor to avoid negative consequences.
After exercise, muscles and other parts of the body often hurt. You shouldn’t always be afraid of this, because discomfort may appear due to the body’s adaptation; it will soon pass. But in order to avoid it, follow the advice written above, monitor your pulse and sensations during exercise, and also visit a doctor before training.
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After an unusually intense class, we feel satisfied with the work we have done and our muscles ache like hell. If in such cases you are used to looking for salvation in your own first aid kit, think about the possible side effects. Many popular painkillers belong to the so-called class of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Their periodic use will not cause harm, but after the next yoga class it can cause disturbances in the body - most often this is stomach disorders. To protect yourself from this, it is better to resort to natural painkillers.
Ayurvedic medicine offers several natural ways to relieve muscle pain. According to Ayurvedic principles, cramps and spasms are evidence of an excess of Vata energy. It is characterized by such properties as “cool”, “rough” and “dry”, so you can relieve muscle discomfort, respectively, with something damp and warm. Take a bath or apply a heating pad to the sore area.
Michelle Halef, a yoga therapist at the New Mexico Institute of Ancient Indian Medicine, recommends adding a cup to a hot bath for complete muscle relaxation. baking soda and a quarter cup ground ginger. Ginger will warm the body and increase blood flow to the muscles, and baking soda will help flush out toxins through the skin's pores, says Halef.
“In Chinese medicine, muscle pain is believed to be a result of stagnant energy,” says Anna Jian, dean of the Colorado School of Traditional Chinese Medicine. For those who regularly practice yoga and also regularly suffer from muscle pain, Jian recommends applying an elixir of menthol, camphor and medicinal herbs, it will awaken dormant energy. This elixir will be prepared for you at a Chinese medicine center near you.
According to homeopaths, bruises and contusions are best treated with arnica, which stimulates blood circulation and relieves inflammation and swelling. “Arnica penetrates muscle tissue and blood vessels,” explains Nancy Gahles, board member of the National Center for Homeopathy. “Since a bruise is essentially injured blood vessels, arnica will speed up its healing.” Arnica can be found in the form of gels, creams, ointments, as well as tablets and pads. Experts recommend choosing the external one from all the methods of application - just apply a little product to the sore spot, and all the unpleasant sensations will go away.
Physical activity is beneficial for the body - this is a proven fact that does not raise doubts. Regular exercise improves well-being, quality of life, speeds up metabolism, helps maintain flexibility and mobility of the body, promotes the growth of muscle mass and increases endurance.
But all these positive moments are slightly overshadowed by one unpleasant by-effect from sports training: muscle pain of varying intensity. Pain syndrome most often occurs in beginners after the first exercises, but even if you are an experienced athlete, muscle pain probably accompanies you during periods of high-intensity loads or when performing weight-bearing exercises.
Many, having felt pain after sports activities, succumb to a common misconception and consider it a sign of a well-done workout and a manifestation of an increase in muscle mass: “it hurts, it means it’s growing.” In fact, severe muscle pain and the inability to move normally the next day, as a rule, are the result of ordinary non-compliance with the exercise technique. Let's take a closer look at what happens in the muscles during training and why pain occurs.
Causes of muscle pain after exercise
There are two types of muscle pain that appear at the initial stage of sports activities, which are considered natural and therefore safe.
One occurs right during training, at the moment when you perform the last, heaviest repetitions of the exercises. Why is this happening?
During training, ATP (adenosine triphosphoric acid), which is the most important source of energy, begins to decompose in muscle tissue and blood. Because of this, hydrogen ions accumulate in the blood and muscles, and the pH of the blood begins to shift towards oxidation. It is because of the “acidification” of the blood that a burning sensation occurs. It passes quite quickly: blood and increased air ventilation in the lungs help the body cope with the accumulated hydrogen ions. But all subsequent pain is associated with microdamage in muscle tissue.
The second is the so-called sore throat, or delayed muscle pain.
It occurs 6-8 hours after physical activity and reaches a maximum after about 2-3 days. As a rule, its appearance is a consequence of unusual or excessively intense physical activity. You have most likely experienced yourself more than once: not only at the very beginning of fitness classes, but also when mastering new sets of exercises or increasing their duration and intensity. This type of pain is caused by microscopic damage or even tears in muscle fibers.
A large number of muscle microdamages inhibit the growth of muscle tissue. This is because muscle growth requires amino acids, which are also needed to heal damaged muscles. Severe damage to muscle tissue “steals” amino acids for healing, thereby preventing muscle fibers from growing.
Traumatic causes of muscle pain
The complete opposite of natural pain sensations is strong pain resulting from injury. This pain is aching in nature, intensifies even with minor exertion and becomes unbearable with sudden movement.
The pain syndrome appears immediately during training, sometimes the next day.
If you experience redness and swelling of the tissues, bruising, or general malaise, this clearly indicates a serious injury to the muscles and ligaments. In this case, do not delay going to the doctor!
Most main reason injury in the gym is negligence. To avoid unpleasant consequences, it is enough to follow a few simple rules. Not worth it:
- start straight away with heavy exercises, skipping the warm-up
- continue to exercise on exercise machines, experiencing any inconvenience
- take on excessive weight during strength training
- During training, ignore the appearance of crunching or clicking in the joints
And don’t forget to listen to your trainer’s advice: under the guidance of our trainers, you can not only get the desired effect, but also learn how to take care of your training safety.
How to get rid of pain after exercise
We've looked at the causes of pain, now let's talk about how to get rid of it. Safe types of pain can be relieved directly during exercise by repeating the exercise that caused it, but with less load. These actions will remove muscle stiffness and ensure increased blood flow, carrying oxygen and nutrients necessary for regeneration to the tissues.
Discomfort in the muscles of the legs and lower body can be relieved with cardio exercises, and pain in the muscles of the upper body can be relieved by doing bodyweight exercises or doing yoga.
If we talk about relieving soreness, there are several effective methods that can quickly relieve pain.
Proper nutrition and sleep patterns
This is of paramount importance for the restoration of muscle tissue. After hard training, your muscles need proteins and carbohydrates: the former supply the amino acids needed for fast healing microtears, and the latter provide the muscles with glycogen. Drinking at least 2 liters of water per day helps remove toxins from the body and prevents dehydration, which leads to muscle fatigue (however, do not overdo it: drinking too much causes the kidneys to work too hard). Don't forget about rest: stick to a routine, try not to go to bed too late and sleep at least 8 hours. Adequate, healthy sleep will help you regain your strength and prepare for new workouts.
Relaxing massage
Massage is very effective method getting rid of sore throat. It relieves muscle tension, disperses lymph, increases muscle elasticity and relieves stiffness.They know how to properly recover after sports: a new sports massage service will help you regain strength and well-being after a quality workout. Search in Massage’30 and Massage’60 and sign up for a relaxing massage session.
Hot bath or sauna
The sauna at The Base is a great way to relieve muscle pain! During your stay in the sauna, blood vessels dilate, which increases the volume of blood in muscle tissue, promotes the removal of toxins and speeds up the recovery process.
How to avoid muscle pain after exercise
The best thing, of course, is simply to prevent pain from occurring. The simplest and most effective way to avoid pain after exercise is to approach your workouts wisely. You shouldn’t overload your muscles at the very first lesson: experienced trainers at The Base club advise increasing the load little by little, constantly adjusting its duration and intensity. In addition, never waste time on warming up and cooling down.
Warm-up
This is a necessary element of any workout, reducing the risk of injury, warming up the muscles, reducing their stiffness and relieving the athlete of pain after exercise.
Cool down and stretch
You need to finish any workout simple exercises for all muscle groups, light jogging and stretching. This will help get rid of the lactic acid that has accumulated in the muscles during exercise.
Is it possible to exercise when your muscles are still sore from a previous workout?
This question is often asked by beginning athletes, and there is no definite answer to it; it all depends on the goals that the trainee sets for himself.
If your goal is to gain muscle mass and improve strength results, then it will not be advisable to continue training, since pain indicates that the muscle recovery process has not yet ended.
If training is needed to maintain athletic shape, then the muscles can be loaded, albeit with a lighter load.
If you find yourself in the gym to burn excess fat, then you can and even need to exercise, but the load should be more voluminous and less intense.