How to Relieve Muscle Pain After Workout?

Relieving muscle pain after a workout is essential for recovery and maintaining exercise consistency. Common methods include gentle stretching, staying hydrated, applying ice or heat, and incorporating rest days. Light activities like walking or yoga can also promote blood flow and reduce soreness.

This article discusses therapy options for post-workout pain relief if you’re curious how to manage it.

• Every workout you do during the day causes pain in different regions of your body.
• Sometimes this pain gets too bad and causes harm.
• The RICE concept, painkillers, and physical therapy are used to manage the pain.

What meaning of a workout?

• A workout includes taking part in daily physical activity to build muscle.
• Around the world, a lot of people train out every day to maintain their body weight and build strength.
• Everyone has body pain from the beginning of the workout, which gradually subsides to pain every day.
• In order to alleviate muscle pain, you must have treatment.

What are some home remedies for after a workout pain?

RICE principle:

The RICE treatment is always used at home when pain is caused after working out.

• R-rest = Take a break from your workout as soon as you experience pain, rest for a few days, and then resume your increased activity for a few days.
• I-ice = Ice is applied to the painful area to reduce swelling and pain for 20 minutes with the aid of a towel. Avoid applying ice directly to the skin as this can cause burns. You can also apply frozen peas and an ice pack to the painful area.
• C-compression: To relieve pain and swelling, you can also apply a compression bandage to the affected area; however, this bandage is not worn nightly.
• E-elevation: In order to relieve muscular pain and swelling, you should try to raise the damaged area using a pillow.

Pain medication:

• Anti-inflammatory medications, such as ibuprofen, are part of the class of medications known as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines (NSAIDs), which are used to relieve pain.
• To relieve muscle pain, you can also apply volini gel to the affected area.
• The intensity of the pain determines the dosage of this medication.

Heat therapy:

• You can also try heat therapy if the pain does not go away after the at-home treatment and there are muscular spasms and swellings.
• Additionally, this heat treatment is used for 20 minutes.
• You are also accustomed to using warm water and hot packs for warmth.
• You can use this to relieve muscle spasms, edema, and pain.

When should you call the doctor?

• when home cures manage to reduce the ache.
• when you experience any serious injuries following a workout, such as sprains, stiffness, or spasms in your muscles.
• if, after many days, the swelling and irritation do not go down.
• Following the evaluation, the physician recommends diagnostic procedures such as MRIs and X-rays to ensure a correct diagnosis.
• The physician then suggested appropriate muscle pain management.
• Most doctors recommend physical therapy as a treatment for muscle pain.

Six simple methods for easing post-exercise muscle pain;

Use an ice pack

For approximately fifteen minutes, apply an ice pack wrapped in a thin towel to the aching muscles if the injury is acute or if the joint or muscle area is swollen and feels warm. If the muscles are only sore from the exercise and there isn’t any swelling, use a hot pack for fifteen minutes to increase blood flow.

Go for a massage

Muscle aches and extremely tight, painful muscles might be relieved with a trigger-point or sports massage.

Stretch,

To avoid painful muscles after a strenuous workout, stretch your muscles for ten minutes or so. Additionally, remember to warm up your body with easy exercises like arm swings and spot-on marching before working out, or begin walking slowly and then increase the pace.

Do light exercises (such as walking, swimming)

Don’t quit working out entirely. Muscle pain during exercise is an indication that your muscles have been stretched and are gradually becoming stronger. Lactic acid accumulation can be accelerated by utilizing your muscles (with little activity).

Build up eccentric exercises slowly

Muscle aches are more likely to occur when your muscles are contracting eccentrically. The “down motion” of a bicep curl is an example of an eccentric contraction, which happens when your muscles extend under tension. Eccentric training also includes running or walking downward. Gradually increase the intensity.

Take a warm bath

A warm bath may provide momentary comfort by increasing blood circulation and relaxing tense muscles.

Physical therapist treatment for pain after a workout?

In order to relieve muscle pain, edema, spasms, tightness, and weakness, physical therapy treatments include massage, electrotherapy, stretching, and exercises.

Massage:

• When there are any trigger points or tender spots in the muscular soreness, the therapist is recommended to massage the area to assist you release the trigger points and tender spots.
• To make it easier to distribute the hand over the skin, massage is performed using oil and powder to the painful area.
• Three times a day, for five minutes, massage is administered.
• The motion used for this massage is circular.
• Additionally, you can utilize a massager machine to give massages.

Electrotherapy treatment:

Numerous pain-relieving devices, including SWD, TENS, IFT, US, and deep warmth therapy, are part of the electrotherapy treatment.

• US = ultrasound:
• When any tend or & trigger points are present in the muscle pain therapist is used to US = ultrasound for relief to muscle pain & swelling.
• This machine is used for 5 minutes with the gel meaning apply to gel between the skin & ultrasonic probe.
• The level of pain determines the intensity.
• SWD, TENS, and IFT machines are used by therapist in the affected area.
• The painful area is treated with this equipment for ten minutes.

Exercise & stretching:

• The physical therapist advises you to cease exercising for a few days following the evaluation.
• For a few days, the therapist is suggested to engage in active exercise. If necessary, the therapist is also advised to undertake strengthening exercises and passive exercises to relieve muscle pain.
• Each exercise is specific to the damaged joint; for example, if your neck joint is impacted, perform the neck exercise; if your knee joint is impacted, use the knee joint exercise.
• The majority of the physical exercise is done to allow the joint to move normally.

Neck exercise:

• Do the standard neck movements neck extension, neck flexion, neck rotation, side-flexion, and head tilt when your neck is damaged.
• These movements are all done while seated, often in a chair.

Shoulder exercise:

• Perform shoulder exercises when you experience any shoulder injuries, such as rotator cuff injuries, tendinitis, or muscle soreness.
• Exercises that target the shoulder include flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, IR, and ER.
• This exercise can be performed standing, sitting, or in a supine posture.
• Every movement was done three times a day and ten times in a single session.
• Do the pendulum, finger ladder, wand, and pulley exercises as well; they are active, aided shoulder joint exercises for shoulder injuries.
• The pain is also lessened by this workout.

Elbow exercise:

• Perform elbow exercises when an elbow injury, such as tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow, or tendinitis, occurs.
• Exercises that work the elbow include elbow flexion, elbow extension, and elbow band exercises.
• All of these movements are done while seated.
• Every movement was done three times a day and ten times in a single session.

Hip & knee exercise:

• When hip and knee injuries like tendinitis, muscle soreness, or tightness occur, it affects how the hips and knees move.
• Perform hip joint exercises such as flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, IR, and ER.
• The supine position is used for this workout.
• Perform knee exercises such as flexion and extension to strengthen the knee joint.
• The supine position is used for this workout.
• Every movement was done three times a day and ten times in a single session.

Ankle exercise:

• When there is heel pain that affects ankle movements like plantar flexion, dorsiflexion, eversion, and inversion, or when there is an ankle injury such an ankle sprain.
• The supine position is used for this workout.
• Every movement was done three times a day and ten times in a single session.
• All of these exercises will help you reduce your weakness and release your pain.

Strengthening exercise:

• When the pain subsides and you attempt to resume your regular exercise routine, your therapist will advise you to perform some strengthening exercises for every joint.
• Dumbbells and weight cuffs are used to accomplish all of these strengthening exercises.
• Perform the exercise with a lightweight in the beginning, then progressively increase the weight.
• Weights are used for an all-joint workout.

FAQs

References

• Ladva, V. (2022, April 28). How to relive pain after workout? – Samarpan Physiotherapy clinic. Samarpan Physiotherapy Clinic. https://samarpanphysioclinic.com/how-to-relive-pain-after-workout/
• Cheong, T. (n.d.). How to relieve muscle pain after exercise – HealthXchange.Sg. https://www.healthxchange.sg/fitness-exercise/sports-injuries/how-relieve-sore-muscles-pain