This Common Supplement Can Help Soothe Your Sore, Stiff Muscles
Taking daily fish oil supplements can reduce muscle soreness, stiffness, and swelling, and improve range of motion, according to a new study in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition.
The omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil protect the cells around your muscle fibers and act as an anti-inflammatory agent.
Adding these supplements-or whole-food sources of omega-3s like fish, nuts, or seeds-can benefit your muscle function and performance as a runner.
After a tough workout, some muscle soreness is to be expected. And while foam rolling, stretching, or active forms of recovery like going for a walk or bike ride can help ease your pain, fish oil-the common supplement you can find pretty much anywhere-can also help, according to new research.
The small study, published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, included 16 men who were randomly assigned to one of two groups. One consumed eight placebo capsules (300 milligrams of corn oil) per day for eight weeks leading up to the exercise portion of the study and then for five days afterwards. The other consumed eight fish oil fish oil supplements (300 mg) per day for 62 days (before, during, and after the exercise portion) that contained both EPA and DHA-two types of omega-3s.
In the exercise portion of the study, participants performed six sets of 10 dumbbell preacher curls-which are done on a preacher bench or incline bench where your upper arm doesn’t leave the bench-at different angles with 90 seconds of rest in between. This exercise emphasizes the eccentric contraction, or the lowering phase of an exercise where your muscle is lengthened.
Before, immediately after, and one, two, and five days after exercise, researchers measured the participants’ elbow joint range of motion, muscle soreness, muscle stiffness, and muscle swelling, among other things.
The results? Those who took the fish oil supplements were less stiff and sore, their muscles weren’t as swollen, and their range of motion was higher than those who took the placebo supplements. And while the researchers aren’t 100 percent sure why the fish oil seemed to help, they believe its omega-3s protect the cells around your muscle fibers and act as an anti-inflammatory agent. (Micro-tears in your muscles from working out cause inflammation, which in turn leads to muscle pain and soreness.)
There are a few limitations to the study, though. For one, the sample size was very small, and they only analysed one type of eccentric contraction-the lowering phase of a biceps curl.
But Eisuke Ochi Ph.D., study coauthor and associate professor of bioscience and applied chemistry at Hosei University in Japan, told Runner’s World that he “believe[s] our findings could be adapted to other types of exercise, because most of workouts contain eccentric contractions.” For example, downhill running, or the “lowering down” part of exercises like leg lifts or bicep curls.
It is also worth noting that the study was sponsored by a Japan-based fish company that provided the fish oil supplements. Still, according to the study’s methodology, they “were not involved in data collection or data entry.”
Besides, this study is not the first to make the link between omega-3s and muscle recovery. For example, a recent study published in the FASEB Journal found that they can slow down muscle loss due to disuse-like if you’re injured and aren’t able to do your usual workouts.
More research must be done before firm conclusions can be made-Ochi says they are also in the process of conducting a similar study that looks at whether or not fish oil helps endurance performance. In the meantime, it can’t hurt to bolster your diet with more omega-3 rich foods, like fish, seeds or nuts. Besides, research has shown that they can boost your heart and immune system function, too.
