Taking a swim after weightlifting can relax overworked muscles and reduce soreness. The soothing effects of water make swimming the exercise of choice for many people with muscle pain and stiffness. Swimming gives your entire body a workout without straining the muscles and weight-bearing joints.

Effects

Swimming allows you to exercise longer than land activities without increased effort or joint or muscle pain. Submerging your body in water reduces your weight by about 90 percent, which decreases stress on muscles, bones and joints, explains the American Council on Exercise. Spending about a half-hour rotating between soaking sore muscles and joints in warm then cool water and ending with a warm-water soak can also diminish muscle soreness.

Considerations

Muscle pain is often caused by injury or overuse during weightlifting and other forms exercise, but poor circulation also can lead to muscle aches. Swimming in warm water or unwinding in a hot tub increases body temperature and improves circulation as blood vessels dilate.

Precautions

Very hot water is unnecessary to relieve soreness and unsafe. Pool water temperature should range from 83 to 88 degrees Fahrenheit; hot tub water can set between 98 and 104 degrees, according to the Arthritis Foundation. Stay in a hot tub for a maximum of 15 minutes. Children and seniors are at an increased risk of becoming overheated from sitting in hot water.

Recommendations

Minimize or avoid sore muscles from weightlifting by gradually increasing weights. Stiffness is to be expected, but pain indicates you’ve overworked your muscles. You’re probably overdoing it if you increase weights by more than 10 percent during a workout, according to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Strength-training exercises should be performed two to three times a week, with at least one day off between workouts to rest and restore muscles.