Exercise is essential for keeping healthy and fit—but after a tough workout, it’s common to feel sore the next day. For gym goers, this feeling of muscle soreness can be uncomfortable and even impede your progress. But there are ways to keep your muscles in good shape even after a strenuous exercise session. Here are some tips on how to deal with muscle soreness from exercise.
Eat Protein Before and After Workouts
Protein is key for keeping your muscles strong and healthy, so make sure you’re eating enough protein before and after your workouts. Have a snack or meal that includes lean sources of protein like eggs, fish, chicken, or tofu an hour or two before exercise. Doing so will help ensure that your muscles have the energy they need during exercise, as well as provide them with the building blocks they need to repair the microtears that occur when you lift weights or do other types of resistance training. Eating protein after exercise can also help replenish your energy levels while providing more fuel for muscle recovery.
Stretch & Foam Roll
Stretching isn’t just important post-workout; it should also be part of your warmup routine. Stretching helps increase flexibility and range of motion in your joints and muscles, which can help reduce the risk of injury during exercise. Additionally, foam rolling allows you to apply pressure directly to areas where you feel tightness or soreness in order to relieve tension in those spots. This can not only improve mobility but also boost blood flow and circulation throughout the body—all important steps towards reducing post-workout soreness.
Stay Hydrated & Get Enough Sleep
Dehydration can lead to fatigue, dizziness, headaches—and muscle cramps or spasms if you’re exercising intensely! Aim to drink plenty of water throughout the day (at least 8 glasses) and bring a water bottle with you on long runs or bike rides too. And don’t forget about getting adequate sleep; good quality sleep helps promote muscle recovery by allowing time for restorative processes such as tissue repair and hormone balance (which are key for helping muscles recover from hard workouts).
Muscle soreness is inevitable after an intense workout session—but there are steps you can take both before and after exercise that can help minimize it. Make sure you’re eating enough protein before and after exercising to give yourself energy during the activity as well as fuel for post-workout recovery; stretch regularly both before and after working out; stay hydrated throughout the day; get plenty of sleep at night, and use foam rolling if needed in order to release any tension in tight muscles spots. All these measures together will help ensure that you get all the benefits from your workouts without having to suffer through excessive stiffness afterwards!
