The buildup of lactic acid in your muscle tissues, while not the cause of pain, can occasionally limit your training. While lactic acid serves a purpose as part of the healing process following training, speeding up the cycle by clearing lactic acid from your muscles may allow you to train more frequently. You can do this through light exercise, supplementation, massage and contrast therapy. Consult a health-care practitioner before implementing any training or recovery protocol.
Step 1
Train the stiff and sore muscles the next day. This is called active recovery, and should be done at no more than 60 percent of the volume and intensity you used the day before. If you ran 10 miles at seven minutes a mile, run no more than six miles at 11.5 minutes a mile, or a slow jog. If you squatted 300 lbs. for five sets of 10, squat no more than 180 lbs. for five sets of six. The goal of active recovery is recovery, not a workout.
Step 2
Supplement with branched-chain amino acids before exercise. Not only do branched-chain amino acids clear waste products from your muscles, they promote recovery and protein turnover, helping your muscles heal more quickly. Supplementing with branched-chain amino acids can be done before or during a workout, or both.
Step 3
Massage helps increase blood flow to sore muscles. Lactic acid and other waste products will be carried away by the increased blood flow from an intense massage. This requires a fair amount of pressure and may be somewhat painful when employed on sore muscles, which is why it should be implemented only by a skilled practitioner.
Step 4
Shower using hot and cold water. This is known as a contrast shower. After having spent some time in the shower, turn the water as cold as you can stand it for as long as you can stand it. Then switch it to as hot as you can stand it for as long as you can tolerate it. Then repeat. No more than two or three cycles of this should be completed.
Things You'll Need
- Various exercise equipment
- Branched-chain amino acids
- Shower
- Someone skilled in athletic massage
References
- "Physiology of Sport and Exercise, Fourth Edition"; Dr. Jack H. Wilmore, et al.; 2007
- "Journal of Nutrition"; Nutraceutical Effects of Branched-chain Amino Acids on Skeletal Muscle; Y. Shimomura, et al.; February 2006
