Workout Recovery With Salt Baths

Salt. The sea is full of it; so are our bodies. It makes things taste better, and it’s also incredibly versatile. Antiseptic, detoxifying, preservative, cleansing, and healing, salt dries things out, but conversely, helps hold moisture in. it exfoliates and purifies; and in a bath soak, salt helps relax both body and spirit, as well as combats the drying effects of hot water on skin.

I love to take baths and I am constantly on the search for the latest and greatest training and recovery supplements. When I can combine the two, I am in heaven.

Try a salt bath. When added to warm bath water it can help alleviate muscle pain, reduce swelling, relieve stress, improve circulation, soften skin and improve mood.

These minerals are absorbed effectively through the skin, providing almost instant relief from muscle aches and pains incurred on long runs or other activities causing overexertion of large muscle groups.

Here are a few of my favorite salts that you can use or gift one to the athlete or busy woman in your life. 

Three Salt in One SoakThree kinds of salt crystals—Dead Sea, Himalayan, and gray French sea salts are hand-blended with a soothing, detoxifying, and gorgeously sexy mix of neroli, bitter orange, and ylang ylang. The pure organic essential oils and rare salts create a beautifully luxurious, sensuous bath that leaves the mind and spirit cleansed, uplifted, and incredibly relaxed.

French sea salt, Atlantic kelp, and potent algae combine in this
detoxifying soak to nourish dry skin with essential minerals and fatty
acids, stimulate circulation, and restore moisture balance.

The rare ingredients soothe and relax the mind, easing stress. The ultimate bath after a day of modern-life overload.

Formulated from Himalayan Salt Crystals—and scented with all-natural essential oils—these bath salts take a soak to the next level. This particular blend promotes inner peace.

You don't have to get fancy salts to enjoy the benefits of an salt bath. You can turn your bathroom into a luxury spa by grabbing a bag of Epsom salt at your local drug store.

Just one Epsom salt bath a week can have an incredible impact on your
health and emotional wellness.

Making an Epsom salt bath is simple:

1. Fill bathtub with hot or warm water.

2. Add between two and four cups of Epsom salt to the water.

3. Mix the water with your hands and allow the Epsom salt to dissolve.

4. Add five to ten drops of your favorite essential oil just before you
step in the tub to maximize stress reduction. Some common choices are
lavender, rose or chamomile essential oils.

5. Soak in the bath for about 15 minute but no longer to avoid
reabsorbing the toxins eliminated by the Epsom salt.

6. Shower immediately after the bath to rinse the Epsom salts from your
skin, which can dry your skin.

A salt soak after a hard workout, or a stressful day is the perfect cure.

No time for a bath? Strictly a shower person? 

My friend, Dr. Elena Klimenko shared another option for quick relief from muscle aches and soreness.  A few doses of homeopathic Arnica 6C 5 pellets;  melt in the mouth once before a work out and few times if still needed the next day.  Her patients find this works well, and it's an inexpensive option if your schedule makes a salt soak impossible.