Muscle aches: these are the best tips from the experts

Yesterday you felt at the Sport like a Hero and today you can hardly walk. Muscle soreness caught every man once. It occurs especially then, if you don’t do movements that you are used to. You balanced when moving, for example, a washing machine, a dryer and, finally, a piano in the apartment, then in pain the next day and most likely arms, shoulders and back. (Read also: These 8 myths are nonsense)

“The pain arises because in the case of the unusual strain in the muscles, and tiny little fibers tear,” says Professor Dr. Ingo Froböse of the German sport University in Cologne. The body repairs the tears in the muscle fibers and the muscle soreness is created. Until this process starts correctly, it takes about a day. Therefore, muscle soreness is also not immediately, but always with a little delay.

The body responds to damaged tissue

As soon as the body realizes that the muscle fibers are damaged, he ensures that the muscle is warmer and increases the blood flow. This is a similar process as in the case of inflammation. Other cells migrate into the muscle to repair the damaged cells and reduce. “Usually, it takes about two days, until the tissue is repaired,” says Froböse.

After that, the muscular cat of itself. The load was unusually high, and can afflict a muscle soreness but also for up to a week. Can prevent you a muscle ache just by not training less intensive, but it is always a good idea. Caution – the reverse conclusion that Training was not sufficiently intense, if you have no muscle soreness, is not true. When Training, the muscles need to have only sufficient incentives to Grow. “A muscle soreness is not a disease,” says Froböse. “He caused no permanent damage in the body.” However, the muscles in this time is tired and has significantly less power than usual. What Exercises can be really dangerous read in this article.

What helps against muscle soreness?

A lot of you can’t make against muscle soreness. In any case, you should try to train the muscles that hurt already, in this Phase, with full intensity – avoid a too high load. In the pharmacy or drugstore, there are also ointments, and lotions, to act against the long aching muscles. “This does not help but, unfortunately,” says Froböse: The ointments are not deep enough in the skin to show effect.

The muscle soreness is so intense that you can barely move, you can also take one or two days once the pain. This should not, however, serve the purpose of the exercise with the same intensity to continue, but only to the ability to function in everyday life get. Often, even slight movement against muscle soreness, for example, a walk or a bike ride helps. Also a bath in warm water or a hot shower can relieve muscle soreness. (Also interesting: the Right technique So your muscles grow best)

Amino acids hardly bring benefits for sore muscles

Many vendors advertise for amino acids, the prevent, a muscle soreness or in relieving helps. How effective these preparations are in fact, is scientifically disputed. It is true that power athletes have an increased need for amino acids, you often hardly diet can cover. Therefore, it is recommended you frequently to meet your needs with additional präparten.

Who eats as an ambitious recreational athletes, however, is balanced, is likely to be felt by the intake of amino acids no improvement. This looks different from a deficiency: It can lead to the Fitness to muscle weakness – but such a lack is a balanced diet is very rare. Recreational athletes should optimize so dear first of all your diet, before you spend money on Amino-compounds. (Here you can read how cravings can be easily avoided.)

Complaints, which feel like muscle soreness

Sometimes you also have complaints, which feel like muscle soreness, although it has made no Sport at all. These occur mainly in the thighs and can have different causes. It should be, in fact, muscle soreness, so this passes within a week. The pain on hold for a long time in addition to that, you have to have a different cause.

Often there is tension in the muscles or connective tissue. These are often caused by poor sitting posture, but can also be caused by misalignment of the feet. Footballers know, also, pain on the inner side of the thigh, because you have to strain when you shoot often leg strong. The result is that the muscles there, the adductors, are often permanently tense. (Also read: These 3 mistakes almost every Work-out)

Pain can be an alarm signal

Not always pain that feels like muscle soreness are, however, harmless: you can also be a sign of a serious disease. So you can comment on Multiple sclerosis, for example, initially by pain and cramps in the legs. Also a thrombosis, when a blood clot forms in a vein, often feels like muscle soreness. It occurs, however, rather in the lower leg. If you are unsure and the pain you are curious, you should ask a doctor for advice. Most of the pain turn out to be, fortunately, harmless.

By the way: With a hangover of muscle soreness has to do, in spite of the Name nothing to. The term goes back to the word “catarrh”, which describes an inflammation or a cold. If you have a cold, you often feel very tired and has pain in the limbs. It has formed for the complaints of the muscles the word “muscle catarrh”, which was probably smoothed in the course of time to “muscle hangover”. Speaking of which, If you pause with an alcohol hangover the best with the Training, you will learn here.

This article was authored by (Maria Berentzen)

*The contribution of “muscle soreness: The published the best tips from the experts” is from GQ. Contact with the executives here.