ANSWERS: 3
-
Heat before practice and ice after
-
Depends. If pain is acute and sharp - go for ice. If pain is dull - go for heat. Did you warm up?
-
Your muscles hurt because.....??? You tore something? Or you worked out yesterday? If there is swelling you use cold to reduce swelling. Cold will close blood vessels preventing more blood to flow into the area - blood is usually the cause of swelling. Heat will cause the blood to flow, which in the case of sore muscles from a work out you really want the flow of blood. Most of the pain from workouts comes from a build-up of dead tissues/toxins from the workout. If you keep warm and go 15-20 minutes after your hard workout with a slow, light workout to keep the blood flowing you will greatly reduce the amount of soreness the next day. Basically you are keeping the blood flowing to "flush" the muscles. If pain is crippling or "hurts like a mother" then you are advised to NOT workout - 48 hours between workouts is on AVERAGE a good idea, some people require more time. Also before and after your workout you need to stretch - not forcing the stretch, but work into it slowly - this will reduce soreness and will cause the blood to flow.
Copyright 2023, Wired Ivy, LLC

by 