The Best Ways to Reduce and Prevent DOMS
Part of embarking on any new exercise routine is about dealing with DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness). When you have completed a workout you can get DOMS between 24 to 72 hours, and while the feeling of soreness can make you think you've got an injury or is particularly unpleasant, especially for the next couple of days after a particularly intense workout, learning how to reduce DOMS can help reduce that soreness so you can go about your day without feeling stiff as a brick.
Using Pain Relief Creams, Patches, and Balms
It's important to remember to avoid taking painkillers. You shouldn't dull your pain receptors, especially if you want to get back to working out because you could injure yourself. The best alternative is to use patches or creams to minimize the sensation. There's a lot of research to show that CBD oil has been beneficial for athletes experiencing pain arising from injury or training. You can click here for the various types of CBD but specifically for DOMS, you can get CBD cream to apply to the trouble areas.
Use a Foam Roller
Also known as self-myofascial release, this is a very simple way to recover quickly. Foam rollers come in different shapes and sizes and are pretty cheap. But the idea that applying pressure to specific points in the body can help release muscle tightness or knots by massaging them will increase blood flow to the muscles and aid recovery. If you've ever had a sports massage it's a very similar sensation. It's not comfortable but it's a pain that will make you feel a lot looser and aid recovery better.
https://www.nappy.co/
Wearing Compression Workout Clothing
As muscle groups become inflamed which leads to swelling and pain, using compression clothing to constrict your muscles will reduce the fluid build-up. They are worn by marathon runners up to 24-hours after they've completed a race and have reported feeling less swollen as a result, which is a fantastic endorsement. The more vigorous your workouts, the likelier you are to suffer from inflammation and swelling.
The Importance of Warm-Ups and Cool Downs
If you don't warm up or you think it's a waste of time, the importance of increasing blood flow to your muscles doesn't just reduce soreness but it will prepare you better for the workout. You may want to just crank out a few reps as a warm-up at a lower weight before you go for your one-rep max, but if you don't want to warm up you've got to do a cool down. Ideally, you should do both. Warming up will reduce your soreness but cooling down gives you the opportunity to cool your body temperature and allow your muscles the time to return to their usual length. Cooling down will also increase blood flow to the muscles to minimize soreness. A little bit of stretching will go a long way after the workout.
Contrast Showers
While everybody loves a hot shower, a contrast shower goes one step further to help you recover. While the heat of a hot bath will help you to relax your muscles as it dilates blood vessels and improves circulation, you need to be under the hot water for a decent amount of time to benefit the deep tissue. Alternatively, a cold shower is something that most people cannot bear but the cold temperatures reduce inflammation and swelling by reducing blood flow. While there's research that states it's ineffective, the fact that so many athletes have been doing it for years must show there is some benefit from doing it. It can be incredibly shocking but by doing contrast showers, also known as contrast water therapy, you are helping your muscles recover by the warmer water expanding to rush nutrient-filled blood to the tissue, while the cold water contracts the blood vessels.
An Epsom Salt Bath
One of the age-old methods of easing aches and pains, Epsom salts have been used for hundreds of years. When Epsom salts break down in warm water they become magnesium and sulfate. Magnesium is the key to reducing inflammation and recovering the muscle while it also flashes out the lactic acid build-up. If you are looking for a way to relax don't feel bad about adding a couple of bubbles in there too! But you have to remember that 15 minutes is the upper limit of soaking yourself. If you stay in the bath for longer you may start reabsorbing the toxins that the Epsom salts eliminated from the body.
Amino Acid Drinks
While the right nutrition is important for recovery, if you are already having adequate protein as well as consuming antioxidants, omega-3 fatty acids, and anti-inflammatory foods but you are still feeling DOMS, an amino acid drink may help further. But it's important to get the right amino acid profile. When we consume protein, our body breaks it down into amino acids that repair the muscle. But if we don't have the right ratio of amino acids, our body won't feel the benefit. There are numerous suppliers who have created amino acid drinks to match the perfect profile but while many people go towards sports websites, it's important to find one that comes medically recommended. Certain amino acid drinks are actually used by cancer patients to regain their strength. And while we don't want to be taking this from people who need it more than us, there are brands like Fortagen that are specifically marketed to the workout community.
Resting Enough!
And yes, if you don't rest enough you aren't letting your body recover. It's boring, but if you are looking to recover as quickly as possible go to sleep!
While DOMS can be uncomfortable or painful, it's important to remember that DOMS is a sign that you've caused the right sort of damage to your muscles. Because your body is working hard to repair it, you can rest easy knowing you have undergone the right sort of physical exertion. Hopefully, these approaches can help reduce DOMS significantly.