Have you ever woken up by a deep night’s sleep to an aching body and stiff joints? This may sound extra, let’s phrase it like this. Have you ever woken up and felt annoyed at moving even a little bit? Does stretching and moving around right after bed help you in getting active or does it make you even lazier? All of this is pretty common nowadays.
People have been complaining about waking up with sore muscles for no reason and can’t seem to find a way out of it. The only way to figure out the solution for something is by first identifying where the problem is coming from. This is why you need to have answers to questions like why does my body ache after a nap and why do my sides hurt when I wake up in the morning, etc. this is where we come in.
Read on below to get a detailed guide on why it happens and tips on how to prevent morning stiffness.
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Why Does My Body Ache After A Nap
We all know how annoying it can be when you go to sleep thinking and expecting that you’ll be up fresh and energized the next day but instead, you get a horrible surprise. As soon as you wake up, you start feeling extremely stiff and don’t know why it’s happening and how to prevent it.
It is important to be able to identify why the pain is there in the first place. It’s fine if it’s just some early morning soreness but it can be harmful if there is some other underlying issue. Down below we have a list of all the possible reasons why you might be waking up with sore muscles for no reason.
1. Sleep Deprivation
The biggest and most common reason behind a stiff body early in the morning is the lack of proper sleep. There are a lot of chances of you waking up with body aches if you slept late and woke up early. It is crucial to remember that the human body needs at least 6-8 hours of proper, uninterrupted sleep. If you weren’t able to get that amount, you will wake up disoriented and even more tired than you were before the nap.
Not getting enough sleep during the night will not result in an aching body but will also make you sleepy and disoriented throughout the day. If you catch yourself having trouble completing your tasks, going through the day, and falling asleep then it might be the time for you to work on your sleeping schedule.
2. Flu
Flu might seem like an insignificant thing when there are so many other serious diseases but in reality, it can break down your body until it is cured for good. Because of lu and cold, the body’s immune system gets compromised and is usually not strong enough to fight off the illness. With flu comes inflammation. This inflammation takes place on your chest, throat, and lungs but can have a major impact on the rest of your body too. When your body is trying to fight off the flu and the cold with a weak immune system, you will feel tired and stiff in the rest of your body as well.
3. Lots Of Movement
We have been getting one complaint a lot lately. People go to their doctors and on online sites and say my legs ache when I wake up in the morning. This is understandable and can happen if you’ve had a long day. A long day would entail lots of movement as well. If you have been up, early and on your feet since the morning then there are a lot of chances of you waking up with pain in your legs.
People who go on long walks after a long period of no movement or those who go through an intense workout routine will wake up with some pain in their legs. This can be either in their calves, glutes, or thighs.
4. Dehydrated Body
What people don’t understand is that these body pains don’t just come out of nowhere. There is always one thing or another attached to why your body might be hurting. A very huge reason behind aching body first thing in the morning can be because of dehydration. Water is needed for a lot of functions of the body. Also, the lack of water can make things worse for you. If you have any sort of pains and aches, dehydration can increase the levels of pain for you.
A dehydrated body can also elevate and increase joint pains since around 80% of joint cartilage consists of water. If there is not enough water in your body, there is bound to be some level of joint pain.
5. Arthritis
Arthritis is a reason that can be commonly found in elders. In arthritis, the joints get inflamed as a result of which all movements get extremely hard to navigate. If you wake up in the morning you will find that you have trouble moving. This is especially for all those people who have been saying that my legs ache when I wake up in the morning.
Because of arthritis, there can not only be stiffness in the body but also swelling and the inability to move a joint freely all the way through without any pain or any ache.
How To Prevent Morning Stiffness
1. Stretching
Stretching is the best thing you can do for your body early in the morning. You don’t have to necessarily go through pains and aches in the morning to go for stretching. A little stretching session in the morning can help you get rid of any laziness and energize you enough to carry on with the tasks for the rest of the day without any hurdles.
You will also feel that there will be no little to no stiffness in your body after stretching. Also, while stretching you don’t have to go for extensive workout routines. A bit of yoga, meditation, and a few warm up exercises all are pretty good for this purpose. Go online to find out easy routines that work well for you or ask your trainer to help you with some moves.
2. Sleeping Routine
As mentioned above, it is crucial to get proper 8 hours of sleep if you want to wake up fresh. Make sure that while going to sleep you don’t have any electronic devices switched on near you. Any notification or beeps from your phone in the middle of the night can interrupt your slumber and leave you groggy and disoriented the next morning.
Make sure that the bedding you have on is comfortable and doesn’t have any bumps on it that might annoy you in the middle of the night. A lot of times when people ask why my sides hurt when I wake up in the morning, they need to know that uneven mattresses can play a huge role in escalating this issue.
3. Warm-Up
If you are working out before going to sleep, be sure to add in a warm-up session at the beginning of the workout routine. Without a warm-up, you will notice that you will have difficulty in completing the workout session plus it might get hard for you to wake up and move around the next day.everyone who goes through intense workout routines feels a lot of muscle pain and soreness in their body the next.
If working out is what’s causing pain in your body then you should warm up for at least 7-10 minutes.
4. Dietary Changes
Getting your body back on the healthy track won’t be instant. This means you might have to make some permanent changes in your life. Not to be scared, one can always bring these changes into their life gradually.
Start by lessening your intake of processed food. It might taste good for the time but can cause a lot of disruption in your body. The same is the case with food that has preservatives, and unnatural dyes in them. Carbohydrate is also said to be a hurdle in this area of life. Don’t cut out on it as it helps in other areas too but make sure the carbohydrate intake is not excessive.
5. Day Time Activity
Try to move around a little more than usual throughout the day to warm up your body to move. Like machines, if you don’t keep the parts moving, they are bound to get rusted and lose their ability to function smoothly. By moving throughout the day\, you will be increasing blood flow to the joints. As a result, there will be lesser inflammation in your joints and lesser pain.
The easiest tip is to go for yoga or light walks/jog during the day. This can go as long as an hour and be as less as 30 minutes. You can also gradually increase this period restricted for moving. The idea is to just get the body moving for on\e purpose or the other.
6. Posture
You should also work on your posture. Abby tasks that are done while sitting throughout the day should be done with an open mind. Make sure that you keep an eye on your posture throughout the day. Sitting with your back stuck out and shoulders sagging will only increase the pain and add to it.
7. Stress-Free Environment
Tension, anxiety, and stress are some of the major components of random aches and pains in the body. Tension can cause tightened and stiff tendons and muscles. As a result, you will have pain and aches in your back and shoulder but no reason for it.
Try to make meditation a part of your routine. It is said to be the best way to get rid of built-up stress. Focus on your breathing and make a habit of increasing positivity in your life.
Conclusion
Waking up with a body that’s stiff and sore can be very annoying. Before you jump on to finding solutions for it and opting for medications, you should first be aware of the reasons behind the pain and the ache. If the problem persists try going to a professional to figure it out.
