How to Combat Lactic Acid
When you push your body with vigorous exercise such as endurance running or lifting weights, your body begins to generate energy anaerobically via the metabolization of glucose. As a side effect, this process creates high lactate levels and in turn creates high acidity in muscles' cells, which indirectly leads to – quite literally – feeling the burn. While this process serves as a natural defense mechanism against overworking your muscles, a couple quick and easy additions to your regimen can help you take your workout a little further by staving off lactic acid buildup.
Cool down after vigorous exercise. For the last five or 10 minutes of your workout, do a low-intensity version of your exercise. For instance, cap off a run with a jog or follow loaded squats with body-weight squats. This process helps the body transition from the “warmed up” post-workout state back to its normal operating temperature. A proper cooldown encourages blood flow and muscle elasticity, preventing lactic acid buildup along the way.
Take an ice bath after intense exercise such as sprinting or distance running. Fill up a tub with two or three bags of ice and cold water, throw on some warm waterproof clothes and soak for about 15 to 20 minutes. Ideally, your ice bath should be between 50 and 59 degrees Fahrenheit. The chilly temperature causes your blood vessels to contract, bringing oxygen to your muscle tissues and allowing the body to flush out the byproducts of exercise, such as lactic acid.
Try interval training, or adding short bursts of high-intensity exercise to your regular workout regimen. For instance, sprint for 30 seconds during your run, return to your normal pace, sprint for a minute and run normally once again. In addition to regulating the production of lactic acid, interval training increases your endurance, burns more calories than regular exercise and adds a little variety to your routine.
- Just like cooling down, warming up also prevents muscle strain and soreness. Begin your workout routine with five to 10 minutes of a low-impact version of the day's exercise and dynamic, in-motion stretches that target the muscle groups you plan on working, such as lunges and shoulder circles before weighted squats.
- The Scientific American: Why Does Lactic Acid Build Up in the Muscles? And Why Does it Cause Soreness?
- Australian Sports Commission: The Warm Up and Cool Down
- Mayo Clinic: Aerobic Exercise: How to Warm Up and Cool Down
- Runner's World: Ice Baths: Cold Therapy
- BBC Sport Health and Fitness: Why Sports Stars Love Ice Baths
- Delano Public Schools: 10 Things You Should Know About Lactic Acid
- Polka Dot Images/Polka Dot/Getty Images