When you start working out or increasing the intensity of your workout, there may come a time when you come up against a wall. Your body will turn against you and you’ll feel achy and sore and not inclined to engage in any type of physical activity anytime soon.
The best way to minimize your soreness in the wake of a workout is to prevent the pain from creeping up in the first place, but sometimes it will seem like there’s nothing you can do to avert soreness. Thankfully, there are certain tricks you can use to keep the soreness at bay and prevent longer term injuries, and a new report out of Washington offers hints on what those tricks are.
Although it seems counter-intuitive, one of the best things you can do for your body is keep moving. There’s a reason why you see many athletes go on a light jog or stretch out in the immediate wake of an intense workout. When your body is engaged in light physical activity, you enable your muscles to stay limber and not tense up on you.
A lot of your soreness could have to do with your inactivity. If you work in an office all day, for instance, it’s imperative to take some time at regular intervals to get up and walk around. Otherwise, with your legs stuck in one position the entire day, all you’re going to do is focus on the pain, and the lack of proper oxygen and blood flow will just make things worse.
Should things progress to the point where the soreness is actually taking a physical toll on your body and causing you to dread simple motions, then you need to do a little more to protect yourself. Apply ice to the pained area and let the cold do its work for ten to 15 minutes. When you do this, you allow your body to counteract the lactic acid buildup that often accompanies pain.
One thing you might try while in the shower is energizing your body by switching between hot and cold water. You don’t want to scald yourself or freeze yourself, but you can keep your muscles loosened up by going from hot to cold and back again multiple times.
Foam rolling is a trend that many athletes swear by. In using a foam roller, you’re basically taking a full-body massage into your own hands. By stretching and contorting your body in a variety of ways, you can help the hurt parts of your body to loosen up.
Of course, if things get so bad that the pain is excruciating or you expect that muscle soreness could be indicative of an underlying sprain or other medical issue, it’s imperative that you speak to a qualified health professional.
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