Starting an exercise program feels great, doesn’t it? You get a wonderful sense of self-achievement, the endorphins have you feeling high on life, and you know you’re on track for the ultimate beach body.
Yes, exercise feels great, until you wake up the following day and try to move. It’s perfectly normal for your muscles to protest (loudly) after exercise, particularly if you’re just getting back into it after a hiatus from the gym. The most important thing is to not let this deter you from future exercise endeavors – the pain will be less severe as you work out more frequently and increase your strength. Instead, do everything you can to reduce muscle pain – make sure you stretch, don’t exercise beyond your limits, and consider using some topical pain relief containing CBD to make things more tolerable after your workouts.
How to reduce muscle pain after a workout
Just because post-workout muscle pain is normal, it doesn’t mean you have to suffer through it. There are a few steps you can take to help reduce the severity of achy muscles after exercise, including the following:
- Stretch. Believe it or not, one of the best ways to reduce muscle pain after a workout is actually to focus on what you do before you exercise. By making sure you stretch and warm up your muscles appropriately, you will not only reduce your post-workout agony, but also lower your chances of injuring yourself. Make sure you focus on stretching the same muscle groups that your workout will be targeting.
- Hydrate. Stay hydrated before, during and after your workout. This will help to lessen your chances of cramping, and also to reduce inflammation, which leads to muscle soreness. Click here for the best cbd topical to reduce your muscle pain . Typically, water is the best hydration option for most people, but if you are sweating a lot you may want to consider a sports beverage that will also replenish electrolytes.
- Try topical pain relief. Many people see great results from various creams and ointments that they can simply rub onto their muscles to reduce pain and soreness following a workout. Most are effective, affordable, and available at your local drug store – try them out for yourself and see if you find something that works. It’s not surprising at all to get sore muscles after a workout routine, especially when you’re a beginner or you did not have enough or proper warm-up. To alleviate muscle pain and reduce body aches, use a topical relief gel on areas that are prone to overuse, like your foot, back, and shoulders.
How do topical pain relief treatments reduce muscle soreness?
Topical options have become very popular when it comes to treating post-workout muscle soreness. This is partly because they’re so easy to use – you can wake up, struggle through the shower, then rub some cream on your screaming muscles and you’re good to go. Anyone who has used these creams and ointments know that they don’t completely cure your muscle pain, but they can certainly take the edge off so that you can at least look normal when you’re walking down the stairs at work.
So, how do these topical treatments work? Well, there are actually a number of ways. Firstly, some creams and rubs contain active ingredients such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs, such as Ibuprofen), which can be absorbed into the bloodstream and then act systemically to reduce pain. Alternatively, some topicals contain other active ingredients, such as menthol or capsaicin, that can provide a soothing sensation offering temporary pain relief to the area of application. Ingredients such as these don’t actually work to reduce the pain, they just mask it – but that’s usually good enough to keep your achy muscles quiet for a while.
Choosing the right topicals
With so many topical treatments to choose from, how do you know which is the best for your post-workout muscle needs? The best way is to become familiar with the active ingredients commonly used in these products, and find a product that contains the ingredients that will provide the relief you’re looking for. The most active ingredients you will see on topical pain relief treatments include the following:
- NSAIDs. The NSAIDs found in topical creams are often absorbed into the bloodstream, meaning that treatments containing NSAIDs are not a great option for anyone looking for a natural remedy for their sore muscles.
- Menthol. Menthol is an ingredient commonly found in topical treatments for pain relief that provides safe and effective cooling at the site of application. Menthol feels very soothing when applied, but typically only provides short-term relief.
- Capsaicin. Capsaicin was first isolated from chili peppers, and is responsible for their spicy taste. When applied to the skin, it delivers a burning sensation, and in theory actually shuts neurons down after they’re stimulated by the chemical, thus causing feelings of pain to disappear. However, the low concentration of capsaicin found in topical creams and ointments may not actually be high enough to be very effective.
Combined with proper stretching and hydration, topical relief options for muscle pain can have a very positive influence on your recovery time after a workout, ensuring you’re ready to do it all over again in no time at all!
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