Ways To Get Rid Of Excess Lactic Acid In Muscles

The human body moves with the help of hundreds of muscles. Even the internal organs have respective muscular systems that help them to function efficiently. The muscles need fuel to remain active. The human body fuels the muscles through the process of glycolysis. In this process, the glucose available in the cells is broken down to form adenosine triphosphate (ATP). The amount of ATP that forms through glycolysis depends on the supply of oxygen in the cells.⁽¹⁾ While performing high-intensity exercises your muscles may lack sufficient oxygen. Normally your body gets oxygen through aerobic respiration. However, while performing intense exercise regimes the body often requires more oxygen than you can actually breathe in. This is when your body depends on anaerobic respiration and muscles depend on anaerobic glycolysis. Lactic acid happens to be a by-product of the process of anaerobic glycolysis.⁽²⁾ Excess of lactic acid in the muscles can cause side effects. Before we look at the ways to get rid of lactic acid from muscles, let us look at the side effects of lactic acid accumulation.

Lactic acid formation in our muscles leads to a burning sensation which is more likely to appear in the middle or end of our workout regimes. The increase in the lactic acid level is high when it accumulates faster than the human body can remove it. An excess accumulation of lactic acid can lead to a condition of lactic acidosis.⁽³⁾ A very common result of lactic acid buildup is extreme muscle soreness and a feeling of being completely worn out and thus getting rid of it is extremely important.

In the course of this discussion, we will take a look at various ways through which we can get rid of excess lactic acid in our muscles.

Lactic acid formation in the muscles is natural. The human body has its own way of using up the lactic acid that has been stored in the muscles. Only people with chronic liver problems and other underlying conditions like cancer and AIDS are unable to use this lactic acid in their muscles in a natural way. Once you stop working out, the formation of lactic acid in our muscles stops slowly. It then gets cleared away by our liver. Hence if you wish to remove the lactic acid buildup in your muscles while working out take more breaks.^{(1, 2)}

Our body turns to anaerobic respiration whenever we exercise intensely. If you wish to reduce and finally remove the lactic acid buildup in your muscles you must workout at a pace where aerobic respiration will be enough to fuel your body with energy. Hence you must work out at a less intense pace and manner. To make things work at their best you can combine intense and not-so-intense exercise sets in a pattern under expert guidance.⁽⁴⁾ In this way, you can have a good workout at your desired level but lactic acid buildup will not be in excess. Keep in mind that a professional trainer can guide you better in this matter.

One of the best ways to reduce the lactic acid index in your muscles is to increase your lactate threshold. This happens when you are trained to work out or exercise at a less intense pace for a long time. With the passage of time, your capacity for intense training through aerobic respiration can increase. This means a greater volume of workout sets can be performed without excess lactic acid formation in your muscles.^{(2, 3)}

This is one of the aspects which is often given the least attention. However, breathing well can help in your aerobic respiration which in turn can do a world of a benefit in preventing the buildup of lactic acid in your muscles while exercising. In a nutshell, if you are facing problems of extremely sore muscles at the end of your workout regimes it could be due to excess lactic acid. If you are unable to improve the matter on your own, take help from experts like professional workout trainers, chiropractors, or doctors.

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