How to relieve muscle soreness after exercise?

Usually, due to various reasons, few people can maintain moderate physical exercise every day. Long-term lack of exercise can easily lead to various diseases in the body. Aerobic exercise can effectively enhance the body's immune ability, but sudden and excessive exercise intensity may also cause muscle soreness. Let us learn about the methods that can be used to relieve muscle soreness after exercise.

1. Ice water bath

Some long-distance runners use ice baths to reduce muscle soreness. An ice bath is a bath in cold water with ice cubes added, which can effectively reduce inflammation and soreness because an ice bath is more effective than an ice pack and freezes the entire body at once rather than just a part of it. If you don't have access to an ice bath, you can try applying an ice pack to the sore joint.

2. Eating after exercise

After a long run or intense workout, don't wait too long to eat. Studies show that muscles are most susceptible to repairing glycogen, or stored glucose, within 30 minutes after exercise. If you eat shortly after working out, you can minimize muscle stiffness or soreness. According to scientific research, the most appropriate food intake should be foods containing 1 gram of protein to 3 grams of carbohydrates.

3. Stay hydrated

Make sure you stay hydrated after your run, especially in the summer. Drinking water after running is enough to replenish the water lost by the body. However, professional athletes prefer to drink beverages that help the body recover, such as chocolate milk, coconut water, etc. Ordinary people can judge whether they have enough water by looking at their urine. If the urine is dark yellow, it means they need to continue drinking water. The normal color should be light lemon yellow.

There are many ways to relieve muscle soreness, but it is best to warm up before exercise and try to avoid damage to the muscles during exercise. At the end of the exercise, you can also use your hands to slowly pat the parts that are prone to soreness. This can effectively relax the muscles and reduce the possibility of soreness.