Regardless of workout experience or intensity, everyone experiences muscle soreness, from minor to severe.
These tiny tears in muscles are the result of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), which happens after working out. The worst effects of DOMS occur 24 to 72 hours after exercise, and it usually lasts 12 to 24 hours.
During the painful period, in addition to making daily duties less practical, extreme soreness might make it difficult to sit down and even postpone the next workout.
Learning how to reduce soreness after leg day will help you recover faster and continue your routine. The methods include:
- Rest & massage the sore muscles
- Foam rolling
- Stay hydrated
- Cold and heat therapy
- Eat Right and add anti-inflammatory foods to your diet
- Protein
- Epsom salts soak
- Get a good night's sleep
- Compression garment & keep moving
Let's delve into the details!
Rest & Massage the Sore Muscles
If you don't know how to reduce soreness after leg day, the most simple way is to take a rest. Take the day off from exercise. During relaxing, don't forget to gently massage the sore muscles so they will be less stiff and recover faster.
Foam Rolling
Self-Mofascial Release, sometimes referred to as self-massage, is a massage technique that reduces discomfort by stretching and loosening the fascia surrounding the muscle with a foam roller.
Here is how to reduce soreness after leg day with foam rolling: Use the roller slowly, up and down the calf muscles, and keep it at sore regions for 20 to 30 seconds before moving on for the best effects.
Stay Hydrated
Due to its critical function in muscle healing, proper hydration is essential for recovering following leg day. Glycogen synthesis and muscle repair depend on water and electrolytes. Therefore, drinking water or an electrolyte-rich sports drink maintains fluids flowing through the body and reduces inflammation.
Cold and Heat Therapy
Cold therapy can be applied after a workout to relieve muscle soreness. Ice packs, cold compresses, and ice baths are popular methods. Remember to limit each session to a maximum of 15 minutes to prevent skin damage.
On the other hand, by increasing blood flow, heat therapy helps ease muscle tightness and inflammation, especially in strained muscles. You can use heating pads, steamed towels (with precaution), or even go to a sauna.
Eat Right and Add Anti-inflammatory Foods to Your Diet
While searching for how to reduce soreness after leg day, we usually don't think of a simple method. It's our diet.
Healthy food, such as green leafy vegetables, tomatoes, nuts, olive oil, fatty fish, and fruits (berries), is helpful since they have anti-inflammatory qualities.
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Protein
Protein has many benefits, including muscle growth and repair. By adding protein-rich products, such as beef, chicken, fish, seafood, eggs, milk, cheese, and nuts, you'll actively aid in your leg muscle recovery process.
Epsom Salts Soak
Soaking with Epsom salts will soothe your body, relax your muscles, and ease tension. Your skin can absorb the magnesium sulfate from Epsom salts, aiding in alleviating pain and reducing inflammation.
Mix 1-2 cups of Epsom salts in a warm water bathtub and let yourself relax in it for 15 to 30 minutes.
Get a Good Night's Sleep
Reducing leg discomfort and accelerating healing requires a good night's sleep. Restful sleep of 7-9 hours every night reduces tension and pain by promoting muscle regeneration and repair.
Compression Garment & Keep Moving
The last method on the list of how to reduce soreness after leg day is using compression leg wraps and training. It helps flush out acid lactic, which should not be in your muscles; otherwise, the pain will likely come to you repeatedly.
There are some exercises you can do after having leg soreness, such as using a stationary bike, rower, or air bike.
Top 6 Stretches to Do After Leg Day
Stretching exercises are useful after a leg day for faster muscle recovery. They include:
- Downward facing dog: Straighten your legs, raise your hips, and slowly lower your heels to the floor to complete a straight-arm plank. Keep your back flat and refrain from arching it. Hold for 10-15 seconds, then let go.
- Butterfly stretch: Sitting on a yoga mat, grip both feet, bend your legs toward your groin, and gently press your knees down. After holding for 20–30 seconds, let go and do it one or two more times.
- Squad stretch: Stand upright, bend your left leg, grab your ankle, straighten your back, and hold for 20 seconds.
- Figure 4: Pull your right leg closer to your chest, cross your left ankle over your right knee, and stop when you feel a stretch.
- Seated hip rotation: While sitting on a mat, slowly rotate your head and torso to the right while bending and crossing your right leg over your left. After 30 seconds of holding, let go. Do this 2-3 times.
- Kneeling hip flexor stretch: Bring your left knee forward while sitting on a yoga mat with your knees on the mat and your palms pressed into the mat. Lean forward, extend your right leg behind you, and straighten your upper body. Do it for 20 seconds.
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