How does muscle pain actually arise?

Muscle pain is caused by small tears in your muscle fibers during exercise. New or heavy training, and eccentric movements (where your muscles lengthen while providing force, such as squats), especially cause this damage. Your body responds with an inflammatory process, which leads to stiffness, swelling and pain.

You have 2 types of muscle pain:

1. acute muscle pain: Palpable during or immediately after exercise due to accumulation of lactic acid. This disappears quickly.

2. Delayed Muscle Soreness (DOMS):Onsets 12-48 hours after exercise due to repair of muscle damage. Is muscle pain bad? NO, muscle pain is a normal recovery process that makes your muscles stronger. However, too much muscle pain can indicate overload. Get started with our 5 tips below and you will see how much benefit you will get from it.

Tip 1: Good warming up & cooling down.

This point is often underestimated, without a good warm-up you are more likely to suffer from muscle pain after exercise. With a warm-up you prepare your muscles for effort. A warm-up usually lasts about 5 minutes and causes your body to warm up, your breathing to increase and your muscles to gradually loosen.

It also increases blood circulation and makes your muscles more elastic. We recommend that you apply Ilera cream before training to the area where you will exert the most effort.

End your training with a good cool-down. This helps to remove the waste products in your muscles faster. This is important to reduce muscle pain after exercise.

Many athletes take a warm shower after cooling down and then apply Ilera cream to the stressed muscles.

The muscle activity is then reduced very nicely and gradually, so that unpleasant effects the next day such as stiff muscles, muscle pain, stiffness, etc. no longer stand a chance and your muscles are quickly back in good condition.

Tip 2:  Good nutrition & hydration.

After intensive training or physical exertion, muscle pain can occur due to small tears in your muscles. With the right nutrition and hydration you can resolve muscle pain faster and prevent it.

Nutrition for muscle recovery:

Proteins: Essential for repairing and building muscle tissue. Choose low-fat cottage cheese, chicken, or vegetable proteins.

Carbohydrates: Replenish your glycogen stores with whole grain products, oatmeal, or fruit. This speeds up your recovery.

Antioxidants: Fruits and vegetables such as berries, spinach and oranges help reduce inflammation.

Hydration against muscle pain: Drink enough water before, during and after exercise to remove waste products faster.

If necessary, add electrolytes (such as in coconut water or a sports drink) to better retain fluid and minerals.

Practical tips: Eat a meal with proteins and carbohydrates within 30 minutes after your workout.

Hydrate all day long, not just during exercise.

With the right nutrition and hydration you will recover faster, minimize muscle pain and be ready for action again quickly!

TIP 3: Massage your muscles.

Massage is the way to relax and restore your muscles.

It stimulates blood circulation, relieves pain, helps remove waste products faster and repair micro muscle tears better.

After exercise, a good massage in combination with Ilera cream ensures smoother muscles and less tension.

Make it a habit, and your muscles will thank you! Give your muscles that extra attention, they deserve it!

Tip 4: Keep moving.

Sitting still is not the solution! Active rest, such as walking, cycling or light yoga, helps stimulate circulation. This accelerates the removal of waste products and promotes muscle recovery.

Light movements keep your muscles flexible, reduce stiffness and prevent muscle pain from lasting longer. It's simple: continuing to move slowly works wonders. Combine this with drinking enough water, a healthy diet and Ilera cream for optimal recovery.

Give your muscles some love by staying active and you'll feel fit again in no time!

Tip 5: Get a good night's sleep.

The best remedy is simple: a good night's sleep. While you sleep, your body switches to recovery mode. During the deep sleep phase, growth hormones are produced that repair and strengthen your muscles, as if your body is receiving a nightly maintenance service.

Before going to sleep, apply Ilera cream to the area where you have made the most effort to strengthen this process!

Too little sleep? Then your recovery will take longer, your muscles will remain stiff and you will feel as if you have run a marathon after climbing the stairs. Therefore, make sure you get 7-9 hours of sleep per night. Do you want to do it extra well? A fixed sleep rhythm helps your muscles and your energy level.

With these tips you can reduce muscle soreness and optimize your recovery, so you can be ready for your next training faster!