How to Soothe Joints After Exercise

Exercise is something that every person needs to do regularly. Sometimes after we exercise, we feel sore, a bit stiff or even have swollen and achy joints. There are several ways to help soothe the joints after exercising.

Things You'll Need

• Ice packs
• Soothing ointments

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Instructions

• 1

  Start soothing your joints after exercising by taking preventative measures before you start your workout. Make sure that you wear athletic shoes that offer the appropriate amount of support for your body size and the type of exercise. If you have a problem with arthritis in your joints, try using a support for the joint area such as a knee support, elbow support or wrist supports. Don't do higher impact aerobic type exercise if you have joint issues. Try power walking instead of jogging or low impact aerobics instead of high impact. Most importantly, warm up and stretch properly before you start to exercise.

• 2

  Finish your workout or exercise period, and then take time to cool down and stretch. Stretching is as important after the workout as it is prior to starting the workout. Stretching really helps your joints and muscles to relax and helps to avoid pain later on.

• 3

  Take a warm bath to relax. Really settle back and soak in the tub. A warm bath, particularly if it is a whirlpool bath, helps every aspect of your body after a work out. If you don't have time for a long bath at least go for a warm shower. Whether it's a soaking bath or warm shower, doing this right before bedtime will really help your body relax for a good night's rest.

• 4

  Relax in a hot tub to help soothe your joints after exercising. The heated hot tub gives similar effects to a whirlpool bath, as they are both relaxing your joints and muscles with the pressure jets circulating the hot water.

• 5

  Place an ice pack on the joint area that is achy or swollen after exercising. If you have a joint area that is regularly swollen after exercise, you may want to invest in a more therapeutic type of ice pack or cold pack. These are usually larger, can be used repeatedly and can actually wrap completely around the joint to help soothe.

• 6

  Rub your joint areas with a topical analgesic, ointment or liniment to help soothe the discomfort. There are many on the market and you can find many that give a cold, tingly feeling without using the ice packs. You may have to do some trial and error to find the product you prefer.

• 7

  Arrange to get a massage after a workout. There are full body massages or some that are specifically designed to rub the muscle and joint areas that need to be relaxed. In addition, you can have them use hot oils and rub out the achy muscles and joints.