The only downside to that feeling of immense satisfaction after a challenging workout is the soreness. In a way, as long as you keep pushing yourself to do more the soreness will never go away. This is why it’s time we’ve put together a list of natural remedies for sore muscles. With tips from this home remedies website and our own experience as fitness freaks, the advice we’ll present here is the best you will find.

Take an ice bath right after the workout

Many gyms and training grounds have an ice bath near the locker room, so athletes can go in it on their way out. Experts strongly encourage people who exercise to spend 15 minutes in ice water right at the end of their workout. This rush of cold will put a stopper on the muscle’s inflammation reaction, making the soreness that will hit you later come a bit milder.

If you can stand the cold, try to muster up the will to do it. If you don’t want to do a full body immersion, at least apply some ice packs on the areas where you suspect pain will come. Your upper back and shoulders, as well as the back of your calves, are the common places that get strained.

Apply heat pads when the soreness kicks in

After a few hours from that particularly challenging workout, when you’re starting to feel the burn, as they say, go for the opposite. Apply heated pads and warm water bottles to the areas that are starting to feel inflamed. This will help contain the swelling and limit the feeling of sore muscles, naturally.

Eat tart cherries and fresh

Research says that tart cherries and fresh pineapple are great sources of bromelain, an enzyme that successfully fights inflammation and muscle soreness. Therefore, helping yourself to a serving of these fruits, as often as you can find them, counts as a natural home remedy for sore muscles.

Drink coffee before your workout

Scientists have confirmed that caffeine has the ability of lower your inflammatory response to extreme workouts, while at the same time boosting your energy levels and accelerating the rate of your metabolism. This makes a small cup of expresso the ideal drink to have right before the main workouts of the week.

We don’t recommend drinking more than 1 cup one hour or so before the workout, though. More than 1 cup of coffee can raise your blood pressure that won’t help with your fitness goals. It might also make you enter a state of overdrive that can end up exhausting you before you had a chance to really work out.

Apply arnica gel or cream

Arnica is a flowery medicinal plant that grows mainly in mountain regions throughout the world. Its benefits include a surprising capacity to deal with muscle soreness when applied topically. This means you should buy a jar of arnica gel or cream as soon as you get the chance and keep it around.

When experiencing muscle pain and soreness after a good workout, just rub some arnica cream over the affected areas. Most of the discomfort you feel should ease away significantly over the night. Arnica is proven to be one of the best remedies for sore muscles, so you are in good hands.

Indulge in massage (even self-massage)

A good massage remains the most pleasant and possibly the most effective way of melting muscle pain and bringing forth renewal. You are free to conduct small, concentrated self-massage approaches to whatever part of your body currently hurts most. Use very gentle motions, careful not to make things hurt even more. If planning to go to the spa, opt for a deep tissue massage.

All in all, while your post-workout sore muscles are not completely avoidable, they are definitely manageable. Keep our list of home remedies for muscle soreness around and feel free to research others, as well. The more you know, the better.