What we do to recover from sore muscles after cheer practice

Hey guys

Sore muscles are a common complaint after cheer practice and when it gets closer to competition your train more and more but have less time to recover. Here are  CFHTT tips that we used to help with recovery for muscle soreness. Please always consultant your GP before trying out these tips

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The best way to deal with sore muscles is to allow your body to naturally heal this normally takes two to four days for total pain relief but healing time may vary depending on the individual.

CAUSES OF SORE MUSCLES

The reason we get muscle soreness is because of overexertion which causes tiny microscopic tears that occur in the muscle as a result of high intensity exercise (such as repetitive stunting, jumps , tumbles , motions etc. Our muscles require time to repair to be bigger and stronger muscle then before so it can handle the pressure being put on it.

RECOVERY

Here are some tips and tricks to help aid recovery

Get plenty of sleep – The body needs time to recover and the best time to do this is when you’re a sleep, allowing your body to completely focus on repairing your muscles. Preferable you want your body to get 8+ hours sleep but we all lead busy lives so just get as much as possible

Have a good soak – Having a bath after practice helps prevent muscle soreness. Here’s a tip have a hot bath and stay in there until the bath goes cool. Having a bath will decrease muscle inflammation, flush toxins out of your muscles, improve nerve function, and relax you.

Get a Massage –. This should be a  ritual , every cheerleader after hard core cheer session to aid in the reduction of pain, stress relief and help with muscle relaxation. Most people don’t have the luxury of getting professional massages so we suggest getting an electric massage machine which is amazing and we would advise anyone to invest in.

Light exercise –  CFHTT  has never believed that you should completely stop exercise when your sore just tone it down. Gentle activity like walking keeps the body mobile

PREVENTION

Drink plenty of fluid aka WATER – This should go without saying that you need to keep your body fully hydrated,  We don’t know anyone who doesn’t drink anything other than water at practice nothing beats it in my opinion.

Fuel you’re Engine –   Your body is like an engine you have to fuel it right or it’s not going to run properly. You have to make sure before you go to training you eat correctly because whatever you eat before training is what is going to fuel you’re through your cheer practice. Remember you’re going to be doing hard core training; a packet of crisp isn’t going to cut it. Eating a properly balanced diet of fruits, vegetables, protein etc  can help prevent muscle injury when your body is lacking in essential nutrients, the muscles are weaker.

Warm-up and Cool down properly – This should go without saying making sure you fully warm up and cool down your  body is essential not only to help prevent  muscle soreness but stop injury.

Full-body Warm-up  is needed to raise your bodies temperature which in turn will allow you to stretch your muscle safely and fully for the exercise. We see to many people doing a quick run and then start stretching and we know they are not warm fully. Furthermore you should always cool down; stopping exercise abruptly is not good for your body either

We loved to hear what you guys do to prevent or aid muscle soreness comment below