Everyone has undoubtedly experienced muscle aches more than once. It is a widespread annoyance due to the many causes that can generate it, from the simple demand to run when you are not used to doing it to more complicated problems, such as nerve compression or rheumatic difficulties. Still, luckily these last reasons are the least frequent.
In this FastlyHealarticle, you will find various ways to remove muscle pain in the legs, from conventional treatments to natural therapies, all of them with proven efficacy.
Table of Contents
Causes of muscle pain in the legs
There are countless reasons why leg muscle pain can appear. It can be a pain located only in one muscle or muscle group, or muscle aches can accompany it in other body areas. It may be an acute problem, which has been evolving quickly, or it may transform into a chronic discomfort if a few months have passed since it began.
Speaking of exclusive muscle pain in the legs, we can find that the most frequent causes are:
Muscle effort
It is one of the most common causes of acute leg pain. Suppose you’ve put a much greater strain on your muscle fibers than you usually do. In that case, there is likely too much circulating lactic acid, especially if you haven’t appropriately stretched after exercising.
What to do?
If you have muscle pain that appeared the day after having made an unusual effort, you can use one of the following measures to feel better:
- Stretch the muscles that hurt: you should do it very gently and ideally after warming up the area (for example, taking a walk) to avoid injuring it.
- Apply heat to the area. This is as long as you do not notice swelling or bruising in the painful area.
- Massage the muscle area. You can use some warm oil (the ideal is sesame, which provides more heat than the others).
- Make rest. It does not mean that you stay in bed, but it does mean that you do not exert more effort on that particular muscle, at least for a couple of days.
- You can take a pain reliever or use one of the natural remedies that you will find later.
Muscle strain
It also occurs with excessive muscular effort or without warming up the muscle before the action. It is common in people who do not have adequate elongation or physical preparation or who subject their muscles to excessive overload.
In these cases, the pain usually appears when the ” muscle pull ” occurs, which persists and may worsen when activity ceases. It can also be accompanied by swelling and bruising in the area where the distention occurred.
What to do?
Apply cold, either with a compressor or ice (not directly to avoid damaging the skin), as soon as you suffer from a muscle tear. In that way, inflammation and bruising are limited.
It would help if you kept your leg resting without straining while you had the pain.
If the pain does not subside in a few days, worsens, or you notice bleeding, you must seek medical consultation. Most of the time, these are small tears without significant importance, but it is better to be cautious and more careful.
To prevent this type of injury, it is essential to:
- Carry out a good warm-up.
- Stretch before making muscular efforts.
Muscular cramp
Sudden and involuntary intense muscle contractures, more commonly known as cramps, usually occur in the calves and appear in other muscles.
The pain of a muscle cramp is intense and can occur with intense exertion for an extended period. Still, it can also be caused by compressing a nerve, with insufficient blood reaching the muscle (for example, thrombi or arteriosclerosis), or if your diet does not provide enough minerals to your body (calcium, potassium, magnesium).
What to do?
Suppose the cramp occurred only once and is related to excessive physical activity. In that case, you should not worry. Still, if the discomfort is persistent, you tend to have frequent cramps, you notice weakness in your muscles, or you see inflammation in the area. It is recommended that you resort to a medical Center.
When you suffer from a cramp, the best thing is:
- Massage the area that hurts.
- Gently lengthen the contracted muscle.
- Apply heat to the contracted muscle. If you notice inflammation or redness, it is better to apply cold compresses.
If it is a chronic problem, it is essential to go to the real cause and understand why the circulation problem is due or what is the lack of minerals. It is also crucial to study digestion since good digestion is critical so that nutrients are correctly absorbed and reach where they need to act. Likewise, good digestion will help improve circulatory problems.
Chronic compartment syndrome
This problem affects athletes who put too much strain on their muscles with repetitive impact activity. This problem affects the muscles and the nerves of the affected muscle compartment. It is also usually seen when appropriate footwear is not used when doing sports.
A group of muscles wrapped in a sheath is called a muscle compartment, and when that sheath is not very flexible, and the muscles become excessively inflamed, it can cause damage to the muscles and the nerves that are next to them.
Among the symptoms that usually appear in the affected area are:
- Pain, cramps, or burning.
- Muscular weakness.
- Tingle.
- Rigidity.
- Swelling.
What to do?
If you think this may be your case, you should make a medical consultation so that the damage does not become chronic and different structures end up being affected.
Various treatments may be recommended to prevent the injury from becoming chronic or worse, such as:
- Repose.
- Physiotherapy.
- Massages
- Analgesics.
- Natural anti-inflammatories.
Acupuncture can also be used with great success. In some cases, surgery is necessary to decompress the affected compartment.
Bone, joint, or tendon injury to the leg
In the event of a fracture, a sprain, or some other structural injury to the leg, abnormal compensatory positions can be adopted that affect different muscle groups that had not been affected at first.
When that happens, it is essential to try to calm the muscle pain and correct the initial injury and adopt good positions or implement help (for example, crutches) not to overload other areas of the body.
You can improve the pain by taking the necessary rest, placing heat on the muscle that has contracted, and, of course, treating the first injury properly.
A natural or synthetic pain reliever can help you cope with the process.
What to take for muscle pain
Various drugs can be used to relieve the pain of excessive muscular effort, a muscle injury, or a cramp, always trying to find out what the cause is and correcting it as soon as possible.
In addition, it is essential to clarify that this medication cannot be taken for long periods for several reasons:
- It can cause adverse effects: such as digestive problems, bleeding, liver or kidney problems.
- There is a risk that the injury will become chronic. It will remain over time if it is not resolved in time.
- The symptoms are covered, and the real cause of the problem is not sought: thrombi in the blood circulation, nutrient deficiency, etc.
The most commonly used analgesics/anti-inflammatories are ibuprofen, diclofenac, acetaminophen or paracetamol, ketorolac. Remember that your medical prescription is always necessary according to each particular case.
Home remedies for leg muscle pain
Natural remedies are usually better accepted by digestion. Consequently, they tend to have a better effect and fewer adverse and unwanted reactions, but not because they are natural. They can be taken indiscriminately since you can also fall into the trap of covering the symptom and not looking for the actual cause of the problem.
Among the best natural options for relieving muscle pain are:
- Ginger: powdered ginger is better since it does not produce acidity in those who usually have problems of this type. It has anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects, as well as improving digestion.
- Turmeric: It is also a potent anti-inflammatory, among other properties. It is best to add this spice at the end of cooking at the rate of half a small teaspoon (coffee size) per serving. It is better to consume it as well as in tablets or tablets since digestion is facilitated by putting it in contact with the enzymes present in saliva.
- Sesame oil massages: When injuries require heat (muscle cramps, muscle strain, stress contractures), warm sesame oil massages can be performed. It is also beneficial to improve circulation in joints that tend to make noise and enhance body dryness.
This article is merely informative. At FastlyHeal .com, we do not have the power to prescribe medical treatments or make any type of diagnosis. We invite you to see a doctor in the case of presenting any kind of condition or discomfort.
If you want to read more articles similar to How to remove muscle pain in the legs, we recommend entering our Bones, Joints, and Muscles category.
I am a Surgeon with a diploma in comprehensive ultrasound and surgical care residency, an area I am specializing in. During the exercise of my profession, I have realized the need for patients to know the diseases they suffer, and I can tell you that a large part of their complications is due to a lack of information. Being a health web writer allows me to transmit my experience, without borders, to all those readers eager for knowledge, educate them in the prevention of diseases and promote a healthy lifestyle.