If your goal for 2024 is to hit the gym harder and achieve better fitness, we salute you for sticking to it and striving to be your best. We know that soreness after a workout can be discouraging, but it’s a completely normal part of exercising. You can, however, take steps to relieve muscle soreness after your workout, recover faster, and get back at it more quickly.
How to Recover From Muscle Soreness After a Workout
STRETCHING EXERCISES
Muscle soreness after an intense workout is almost certain, but stretching can help relieve discomfort and reduce the severity. Stretching helps promote blood flow, which speeds up post-workout recovery. It may not feel great to stretch out your quads and calves after an especially intense leg day, but doing it will help your muscles repair themselves so you can get back in the squat rack and rack up another personal best.
REST, RELAXATION, AND HYDRATION
Depending on the kinds of workouts you do and your goals, planning to take a day off between each workout is a good idea. And while you can and should stretch vigorously on your day off, the ultimate goal should be to give your body downtime. Following strenuous exercise with ample recovery time helps your muscles heal and lowers your risk of injury. If you want to work out two or three days in a row, make sure you’re engaging different muscle groups in each workout. Whatever the case may be, you need to drink plenty of water and other fluids—this helps muscle recovery and reduces soreness after workouts.
HEAT AND ICE
The question isn’t so much whether you should use heat or ice as much as it’s when you should use one over the other. Tactically using warm compresses and ice packs can help relieve muscle soreness and recover better after workouts. Applying heat right after a workout promotes blood flow, and applying cold 24 hours after a workout stifles inflammation. Ultimately, either/or will help relieve muscle soreness, so experiment with different combinations and see which feels best.
GET A POST-WORKOUT MASSAGE
If you’re experiencing muscle soreness after your workouts and want effective relief that also feels great, Wills Chiropractic is your destination for massage in Rochelle, IL. Our clinic offers a wide range of techniques, including Swedish, deep tissue, and trigger point massage. We’ll recommend types of massage based on your needs and lifestyle, but the ultimate goal will be to help relieve pain and soreness in your muscles and joints, make it easier to relax, and just make you feel good.
Schedule a Massage for Muscle Soreness in Rochelle, IL
Wills Chiropractic is your go-to clinic in Rochelle, IL, for massage therapy and other treatments to help you recover after a workout. If you want to relieve muscle soreness, improve performance, or just feel better overall, schedule an appointment online or call us at (815) 562-5333.