Did you know in order for your muscles to grow, break down needs to occur. When exercising you cause micro tears in the muscle that the body has to repair and is the reason for delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) which happens about 24-48 hours after your initial workout. Soreness doesn’t always mean your building more muscle it could be that your overtraining or you completed a totally new workout. Whether your sore from overtraining or you did something new, soreness can sometimes make you a bit stiff because of the pain. Static stretching and myofascial release has been known to help relieve pain, stiffness and create more blood flow for faster recovery. Some ways you can help with relieving soreness so your not cringing at the thought of your next workout is to stretch after your workout and using a foam roller to release the tension that is in your muscles. Static stretching is stretching in place, extending the muscle ideally for 30 seconds. Foam rolling allows for self myofascial release, which causes the cell responsible for tightening your muscles to relax and will help relieve tightness and allow for greater flexibility. You can do either of these activities before and after your workout for as little as 5 minutes. If not have a day set aside where you try to focus on your most sore muscles, foam roll and stretch them. You will feel less stiff and ready for your next workout even sooner than you thought. Think about it like this, the faster you recover the more time you have for the gains. So let’s get to stretching!