12 Ways To Keep Your Muscular System Healthy
Having a healthy body is one of the most important things in life, as you need it to help you live a long and comfortable life that doesn’t encounter any problems. This means that taking care of your bones and muscular system is integral to maintaining your overall health, as they make up your skeleton and cover every inch of your body. When most people start to age, this is when problems can occur, but you can set up your bones and muscles in the future by following some key tips for boosting their strength every day. These tips are easy to incorporate into your daily routine, and you will be seeing a change within yourself in no time.
Below are 12 effective ways on how to care for the muscular system.
Table of Contents
Do targeted exercises
Exercise is needed to keep your whole body strong and to promote healthy circulation in your blood. Your bones and muscles are no exception, but there are specific exercises you can follow if you are hoping to boost their strength. For example, where most exercises keep your muscles healthy, it does depend on which muscles you want to build, and which you don’t. When it comes to your bones, you can make your exercise routine more fun by participating in activities such as dancing, climbing, and even walking up to your home stairs regularly, which all make for stronger bone density.
Remember to rest
It is easy to get caught up in exercise if you want to remain as healthy as possible, but in fact, you can do more harm than good to your body if you don’t have rest days between periods of exercise. This is because your body needs time to recover if you have been doing high-intensity workouts. During this time, your muscles are repairing themselves and growing, while your bones are also rebuilding their strength so that the next time you exercise is easier, and you can push yourself more.
Eat a diet rich in vitamins
Diet has always been important for your body to function properly each day. Yet, if you are noticing that you need to build bone and muscle strength, there are certain foods you can eat which are rich in the vitamins you need. These vitamins include calcium and Vitamin D primarily for your bones and protein and potassium for your muscles. Fortunately, there are lots of foods you can consume that will give you as many of these vitamins as you need. Eggs, dairy products, and lean meats are all rich sources of such vitamins, and you can find one of the highest sources of potassium in sweet potatoes.
Take vitamin supplements
Unfortunately, getting these vitamins into your body can be a tricky task if you are a vegan, as the sources where these vitamins lie the most is in animal products. However, that isn’t to say you can’t maintain a healthy lifestyle, or keep bones and muscles strong if you are taking the right vitamin supplements. These supplements are an easy way to get vitamins into your body; while it is suggested that you try and find as many natural sources of vitamins, there will be days where you are unable to do this, which is where supplements step in. You can find these in most good health stores, and even whilst doing your weekly food shop.
Soak up the sun
Although Vitamin D can be found in large amounts in foods like salmon, one of the best sources for it is the sun. If you can, you should aim to be outside for at least fifteen minutes each day if you want to reap the full benefits of the sun, as the UVB rays your body needs cannot penetrate through the glass of a window. It is important to note that you should stay protected in the sun by wearing sunscreen, or you open yourself to risks of skin cancer. In the winter months, this can be trickier, as there are many areas in the country that don’t see much sunlight. During these times, you should load up on fish products, but if you are a vegan, you can find Vitamin D in mushrooms.
Stop drinking caffeine
Caffeine may be what you rely on to wake you up each morning and to sustain you until the end of the day. Unfortunately, if you are serious about your health, it’s best to cut back on your caffeine consumption as much as you can. Recent research has shown that if you drink too much caffeine, your body can’t absorb as much calcium as it needs. This means that even if you are eating a diet rich in calcium, you may not see your body benefiting from this if you drink a lot of caffeinated products. As an alternative to keeping energy levels up, try drinking green tea each morning alongside a breakfast full of slow-release energy foods.
Go for regular massages
Massages have been used for thousands of years to help people relax and evoke a positive headspace. In some cultures, they were even used to treat muscle pain that people were experiencing. While many people may see massages as an excuse to relax, it is important to remember that this is integral to keeping your muscles healthy. If your body has a lot of tension in certain muscles, this can lead to cramping and muscle pain. This is especially true for those who exercise a lot, and those who hold a lot of stress on their shoulders. Having regular massages can work out some of these knots so that you can continue with your daily routine with ease.
See a physician
In some cases, seeing a masseuse is not enough to stop some muscle pains, and it is best to search for a physician. This is because it may be that your body needs professional medical attention so that you know the therapy you are receiving is doing more good than harm. Usually, it is your back which is under the most pain. The right physician will combine chiropractic techniques and recommend physiotherapy exercises to target any pains you may be having in your muscles. In some cases, they will offer specialized massages for those who are having trouble releasing painful tension from their joints. If you are hoping to see a physician, view here for more.
Don’t ignore any pain
When your muscles are in pain, it is easy to put it down to exercising a lot, rather than considering an injury. Yet, if the pain continues, this is something that can’t be ignored. In fact, it is best if you go and speak to a doctor, to see if you can get to the bottom of what is causing you pain. This is because there could be a larger underlying issue, which could be stopped in its tracks before it becomes something else. Although this could be a scary thing to face, your body will thank you for facing it now.
Use herbal remedies
The health of your joints is something people can forget about when they are hoping to achieve strong muscles and strong bones, but they are the glue that binds your body together. When you start to age, it is your joints that begin to see the effects of this before anything else usually does. For example, through arthritis, and weakened joints. In this case, you can start to rely on herbal remedies to relieve such pains. Using heat packs are best for lower back pain, whilst you can also rub CBD oils onto painful joints to reduce inflammation.
Access your mental health
There is a misconception that your body and mind are separate, which is why much stigma exists around mental health today. In fact, if you are suffering from a mental health problem, this can have a negative impact on your body. This is because the list of physical symptoms that arise from issues like Depression and Anxiety is longer than the list of mental symptoms. The two are intrinsically linked, so it could be that your ill mental health is what is affecting your bones and muscles. Keeping on top of your mental health will ensure that anxiety doesn’t create painful tension in your muscles and that you don’t experience any pains throughout the rest of your body from the pain in your mind. Although you may fall into dips sometimes, there are ways of picking yourself back up so that your whole body doesn’t fall into the same hole.
Get enough sleep
Sleep is key to keeping your physical and mental health. In addition, you need it for your muscles to recover after a long day. While rest days are important to maintaining strong muscles and bones, it is never enough if you are hoping to continue building their strength. Experts recommend that you sleep for 8-10 hours each night for your muscles to grow to their full potential. Also, experts suggest that you don’t eat for a few hours before you sleep. The reason for this is to avoid protein synthesis from occurring.
Is it healthy to be muscular?
Yes. It is healthy to be muscular. It is actually vital for our overall health. Besides increasing and building our strength, muscles boost our metabolism, immune systems, increasing bone strength, and helping individuals who want to lose weight.