tips to ease soreness after exercising?
 

Hi there :)

I've started working out regularly, following dvds such as jillian michaels etc. and was wondering if anyone has any tips to help ease any soreness afterwards?

I've been particularly getting it in my shoulders and my legs (the calf areas in particular have taken a caning) - especially my legs!

Do any of you have any tips to help ease such aches? thanks muchly x

Stretch. Hot bath with bath salts.

You should only feel mild discomfort - if you are more sore than that you have to back off on the intensity. It's not good for your body to overdo it like that.

Robin

Fish oil can have the same effect as an analgesic/anti-inflammatory. Magnesium can also help, lots absorbed from an Epsom salt bath.
There are studies that show that grounding, touching the earth, can help.

I have also had lots of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). Taking it easier and using the “grease the groove” method has worked the best in preventing DOMS ….not curing it

My rowing coach says that five minutes of slow movement after intense effort is the key to preventing soreness. It does seem to make a big difference.

You can do little stretching after your workout to prevent sore muscles and body pains. Once your body gets used to it, you will rarely experience muscle soreness.

During summer training for theatrical stage combat, we did some P90X and they always recommended that we took a short swim in our pool or friend's pool as our cool down.

It seem to work surprisingly.

understand why you get sore
 

Generally normal muscle soreness comes from burning carbohydrates in too little oxygen.... creating lactic acid...
That can come from asking the muscle to do more than it is used to doing, whether you are new or experienced. So either you changed your routine from something you are used to (upped the intensity or new movements), or you've begun or re-begun and over indulged. Either way you can help but not eliminate soreness,, it's an indicator or measure of work + nutrition + rest + hydration.

know the difference between injury (bad pain) and soreness (good pain) though.. if you have doubts .. see the doctor.. life ifs too short to waste time dragging around unnecessary issues..

hydrate before, during and after workouts.. body weight/2 = oz water per day.. muscle is 90% water ..

end game:
do what made you sore again .. and reduce the level of effort with warm up and cool down.... and hydrate...
caveat: Your activity should be appropriate for you age and condition.
start small and build...
A nutritionist with some background in exercise or sports is a great investment.

Doing a 15 minute cooldown of walking & stretching plus icing should help a lot. It'll get better after a few workouts :) Also, you shouldn't workout to the point that you are so sore you can't more- that's taking it too far and can be dangerous. Congrats on the hard workouts!

Ice for 10 minutes a few times a day if possible. I lift and have shoulder therapy, they are the ones that taught me.....its a life saver.

Breathe! Deep breathing while you are doing the exertion. After the workout when you are stretching too, breathe deeply while doing the exertion part of the stretch.

Take a hot bath and you'll feel fine afterwards. Also if any areas are extremely sore then alternate hot/cold for a bit...like apply heat to the area for 5 minutes then cold/ice for 5 minutes and alternate like that for 20 minutes.

Drinking a protein shake always helps me. I drink one right after the jillian michaels dvds. My calves were sore the first week too from all the jumping jacks, etc but not anymore. Keep going- her dvds are awesome and you will see toned muscles in all the places that are sore.

If you can take NSAIDs, I find that ibuprofen sometimes helps. I also do a warm wrap on sore muscles and, crazy as it sounds, I have had luck with massaging my calves by using a rollin pin on them. Warmth helps me the most; even on a hot summer day I make sure to wear comfy sweatpants after a hard workout to keep the muscles from getting too cold to quickly and cramping.

I think "oldschool" nailed this one:

The only thing I'd alter:
It's a measure of hydration + work + hydration + nutrition + hydration + rest + hydration.
All the hydration because most of us don't drink enough water...

• Drink water BOTH before AND after your workout. (I do as little as possible durring...)
• Workout regularly so your muscles get used to being worked.
• Eat and drink well -- could even try to decrease intake of inflammatory foods but I'm not sure that matters.
• Rest as hard as you workout.
• And keep drinking!

Stretching is, of course, a must!
It will go the distance in preventing injury but, as a way to "decrease" soreness I'm not sure I buy it. Stretching, icing, salt baths, popping ibuprofen, and the rest might all be great things but, they only mitigate the soreness after you have it...