Would you like to reduce muscle soreness and wake up fresh rather than in pain? 

We’ve all been there…

You wake up stiff, tired, and aching like crazy. The squats you did yesterday have strained your back…the DOMS have kicked in, and for the next 48 hours, you know you’re going to be limping about like John Wayne…

Introducing…

Muscle Soreness. 

If you train hard in the gym, you’ll know all about muscle soreness? 

It’s painful. 

On the one hand, it feels good. You know you’ve trained hard. But on the other hand, it causes discomfort, AND worst of all, it negatively impacts your next workout. 

How many times have you gone into the gym sore from your previous workout?

You are unable to lift as heavy or perform at your best because of tightness and muscle soreness – it’s frustrating isn’t it?  

The chances are you’ve been in this position lots of times?

Muscle soreness, while not bad, is slowing down your progress and results. But the good news is that you can do something about it. Here’s how to reduce muscle soreness. 

4 Quick Ways To Reduce Muscle Soreness After Weight Training…

#1 Take CBD Oil For Rapid Recovery 

One of my go-to supplements for reducing muscle soreness is Cibdol – a CBD oil that helps you relax, lowers inflammation and speeds up recovery in between workouts. 

CBD Oil is one of the hottest and most talked-about supplements in the fitness industry (and for a good reason). A high-quality CBD oil will help promote deeper sleep and repair damaged muscles at a rapid pace. 

Lots of the world’s top athletes take CBD oil to help them perform at their best. If you want to follow in their footsteps, lift more weight, get faster results, then why not try it for the next 28 days? Just watch how much quicker you recover between workouts.

#2 Foam Rolling After Weight Training 

You’ve probably seen people in the gym rolling around on a cylinder shape made out of foam? Maybe you think, “what an earth are you doing?”. It’s called ‘foam rolling,’ and it’s one of the best ways to iron out tight knots in your muscles. The benefits of foam rolling are vast, such as:

• Reducing muscle tightness
• Increasing range of motion 
• Improving posture 
• Reducing injury
• Increasing circulation 
• Mobilizing fatty acids
• Enhanced muscle pumps 
• Flushing out lactic acid 

I would recommend foam rolling straight after your workout for 10-20 minutes. Here are eight highly effective foam rolling exercises to try next time you’re at the gym. 

You can also do foam rolling on your rest days, and before working out. If you are tight, then pick up a foam roller. I would recommend the rumble roller, like the one below…

#3 Factor In Down Time

You’ve probably heard the saying “you don’t grow in the gym”? – meaning that you grow outside of the gym, with proper nutrition, rest, and recovery.

One thing many of us are guilty of is not having enough downtime. We spend most of our waking hours in a sympathetic state (a high state of stress). We overwork, train hard in the gym, over stimulate on caffeine, and fail to sleep properly. These factors negatively impact our health, performance, and body shape. It’s imperative to factor in rest time, all of the best athletes do it, so why don’t you? 

You can do this by:

• Taking a warm relaxing bath each evening
• Meditating 
• Rest days (no gym training)
• Steam room
• Sauna
• Infrared Sauna
• Sports Massage 
• Active recovery days (walking and low-intensity training) 
• Switching off all technology for one day a week (no emails, work or TV) 

#4 Make Sleep Your Number One Priority 

In his fantastic book Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker – he talks about the importance of sleep. Not only to boost physical performance but to recharge mentally and emotionally. 

When you fail to sleep for less than 7 hours per night, you are more likely to gain weight, have sugar cravings, consume more calories (over 300 extra per day), and your cognitive performance is going to suffer. You will be more likely to spend the day in fight, flight, or freeze mode, rather than being in control of your destiny and making the type of progress you want. 

The best ways to improve your sleep are to:

• Turn off all electrical devices 1-2 hours before bed
• Take a warm bath in the evening
• Read a book in bed
• Wear blue light blocking glasses in the evening 
• Avoid checking your emails and doing anything stressful 2 hours before bed
• Wear a sleeping mask or buy blackout blinds (the darker your room, the better)
• Make you room temperature between 20-22 degrees – ideal for the best sleep

Sports Massage 

While the above four tips work extremely well, in some cases it’s best to hire a professional sports massage therapist. A high quality sports massage will help you recover in between workouts, flush out toxins, lactic acid and remove muscle knots that could be negatively impacting your training and muscle pumps.

If you live locally and would like a sports massage in Sheffield then please get in touch with Sally Screeton who is a massage therapist at LEP Fitness. If you don’t live in Sheffield then I’d recommend having a look on Google, or ask your training partner, friends and family for good recommendations.

Thanks for reading,

Nick Screeton – Founder of lepfitness.co.uk