How to Heal Muscles Quickly After a Workout

by M.L. Rose, Demand Media

When you work out -- particularly when you're strength training -- you actually damage your muscles a bit. Typically, the muscles recover within 48 hours and grow stronger as a result. If you overdo your workout, however, you may start to feel sore shortly afterwards or the following day. Choose from several proactive and reactive treatments to help your muscles heal quickly.

Perform Aerobic Exercise

Perform aerobic exercise after a strength-training session. Lactic acid can build up in your muscles during a workout and may cause soreness that you feel the next day. Aerobic exercise, such as jogging, walking on a treadmill or riding a stationary bike, increases the flow of oxygenated blood to all your muscles for more effective recovery.

Get a Massage

According to a 2012 study published in "Science Translational Medicine," a 10-minute massage following a workout reduces the production of compounds that help cause inflammation and lead to sore muscles. Massage also stimulates cells in such a way that muscle repair is enhanced.

Eat Right

Eat immediately after your workout to give your muscles the fuel they need to recover quickly. Eat within a window of 30 to 45 minutes after your workout. Have a meal that has a ratio of either 3-to-1 or 4-to-1 carbohydrates to protein. Include about 1 gram of protein in your meal for every 11 pounds of your body weight. The carbs help your muscles absorb that protein.

Get Your Rest

Get sufficient sleep on your workout days -- which should be about eight hours for most people -- to help your muscles recover and grow. Additionally, rest your muscles for 48 hours after a strength-training session. If you wish to work out every day, target different muscles on consecutive days. For example, do an upper-body workout one day and a lower-body session the next.

Heal Pulls and Strains

There's no quick way to heal muscles if you pull or strain one during a workout. But you can act quickly to reduce any swelling and thereby shorten your recovery time. If you feel pain while you work out, stop your activity. recommends placing a towel-wrapped ice pack on the sore muscles for 15 to 20 minutes, three times per day. You may also place a compression bandage on the muscles. Elevate the area, particularly if you suffer a leg injury. Otherwise, rest your sore muscles as much as possible and let them heal naturally.

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