Whether it’s moving from point A to B or getting chores done on your feet, your legs help you achieve the basic tasks of your daily life in a breeze. However, if your legs are over-stressed or overworked, you can experience severe leg pain. Most leg pain is acute meaning that it’s short-lived, whereas, some may persist for more than a few months (chronic) and can negatively affect the quality of your life.
Several treatment options are available to relax one’s sore and cramped leg muscles. For example, a shiatsu leg and foot massager targets the deep leg and foot muscles to allow for smooth blood circulation and alleviate pain in the comfort of home.
Before we discuss more ways to reduce pain in the legs, it’s essential to be aware of the different types of leg pain, as it will help you find the right treatment option for you. Keep reading this article to explore!
Different Types of Leg Pain
Usually, leg pain can be either musculoskeletal, vascular, or neurological. Let’s look at them in detail:
1. Leg Cramps
Most of the leg cramps are experienced at the calf of the lower legs, and this mainly happens when these muscles become tight and go into spasm.
Although leg cramps are more common in older people, younger people suffer from this too. High-intensity exercise, extreme sports, and even dehydration can cause leg cramps.
2. Sciatica
Sciatica is caused when the nerve in the lower end of your spinal cord that leads to your legs (sciatic nerve) is pinched due to muscle spasms or some other reasons. It can feel like a shooting pain in your leg.
3. Achilles Tendon Issues
This kind of leg pain is usually felt in the lower legs when the tendon that connects the heels with the calf muscles gets damaged due to overuse.
This issue is prevalent among athletes and even women who wear high heels regularly. If you don’t take the necessary precautions immediately, your tendon may get completely ruptured. Therefore, you may be required to get surgery.
4. Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD)
If the vessels that supply blood from the heart to your legs are blocked or narrowed, it can lead to poor blood circulation and extreme pain.
You may experience pain even when walking, climbing the stairs, or working out. You may also feel the pain in the feet, buttocks, calves, and thighs, and it may only become better upon resting.
5. Shin Splints
Most common in runners and dancers, shin splints happen when you exert a lot of pressure and stress on your shinbone and when they are overworked due to repeated activity, it makes your muscles in this region tender and achy.
6. Hamstring Strain
If the rear of your thigh muscle gets a partial tear, you may notice acute pain in this region. Overstretching or not warming yourself up before a workout session can cause this.
You should stop such activities immediately to prevent additional risk to your hamstring muscles.
Effective Ways to Get Rid of Leg Pain Immediately
Most of the leg pain can go away quickly with the help of home remedies. If your condition still doesn’t get better in a few days, it’s imperative that you visit a doctor immediately for professional medical assistance.
Some of the effective ways are mentioned below:
1. Take a Warm Bath
Take a warm bath every day and add Epsom salt to it. Epsom salt will help alleviate your symptoms of leg pain as it contains magnesium, a natural muscle relaxant, and will immediately provide relief to your sore muscles.
Warm water will also aid in relaxing your strained muscles by allowing better blood flow in your legs.
2. Keep Yourself Well-Hydrated
One of the main causes of leg cramps is dehydration. Therefore, it’s essential that you keep yourself well-hydrated by drinking at least 6 to 8 glasses of water every single day. If you’re involved in a profession that requires a lot of cardio work, you should increase your intake accordingly.
You should also avoid caffeine which causes dehydration and instead indulge in water-based food like watermelon, cucumber, celery, lettuce, strawberries, and oranges.
3. Cold Compress
Using ice packs or cold compresses can help minimize the blood circulation in a particular area of your leg and this will, in return, reduce nerve activity, pain and inflammation.
You should do this cryotherapy for about 20 minutes almost thrice a day until your symptoms start getting better. Also, avoid applying ice directly to your skin. Instead, wrap it in a cloth to use.
4. Lose Weight
Obesity or overweight individuals tend to suffer more from leg pain because their legs aren’t able to bear the increased body weight.
Hence, it’s better to lose weight and make a positive change in your diet. As soon as you start losing a few pounds, you will notice a major difference.
5. Incorporate Physical Activity in Your Daily Life
Physical activity will not only help you maintain a healthy weight but will also strengthen your muscles and bones to prevent any kind of injury or trauma to them.
Most of us lead a sedentary lifestyle, which can restrict proper blood circulation to our legs. That’s why walking at least 30 minutes five days a week will allow for smooth blood flow in your legs and will gradually ease the pain.
6. Stretch Out Your Muscles
Another effective way to help you deal with cramped leg muscles is to include stretching in your daily activities. Straighten your leg either while sitting or standing and pull your toes towards you with the help of your hands to stretch out the strained muscles.
You can also use a roller or self-massage your legs with soothing essential oils like chamomile, peppermint, or lavender to relax your sore leg muscles.
7. Medication
Over-the-counter painkillers such as Ibuprofen and Naproxen can provide immediate relief to your sore and achy legs. However, it’s vital that you consult your doctor before taking them.
If you suffer from chronic leg pain, your doctor may prescribe other stronger medications along with these OTC pills.
