There are hundred of uses for essential oils. They can work for every facet of your workout, helping with anything from relaxation, to detoxification, to acting as an anti-inflammatory. Essential Oils are an often ignored, natural element that can change your workout routine forever.
There are many different essential oils that can boost your energy during your workout. They can also speed up your post-workout recovery. You should experiment with one or two at a time. Watch carefully so that you understand how the Essential Oils impact your body throughout your training and your workout recovery. You want to choose high quality essential oils that will give you the very best results. Read the ingredients carefully, and check reviews online to find the best options. Be sure to learn everything you can about the manufacturer, even as far as how they grow their plants, and how they distill the oil. If you decide to dilute oil in water and drink it, be sure to incorporate that into your workout routine, so that you can test it before your next track meet or big competition.
Here’s a list of what Essential Oils can do for your workout, going through each stage of the workout routine. Keep in mind, each Essential Oil has multiple benefits, so you can use one multiple times throughout your routine. If you’re applying oil to your skin, you should dilute the Essential Oils in a carrier oil.
Essential Oils Pre-workout
Lemongrass Essential Oil – Lemongrass essential oil gives energy and supports weight management. It contains high levels of citral, a compound that supports the production of heat (known as thermogenesis) in the body when consumed. This helps you burn more calories and get a more effective workout. Four to six drops of Lemongrass essential oil applied to your skin or feet before your workout also helps to ramp up energy and endurance.
Peppermint Essential Oil: When ingested, Peppermint essential oil supports digestion and can improve your concentration and sharpness of mind. Apply the oil to sore muscles as part of your stretching process before you begin.
Marjoram Essential Oil: With its calming and relaxing properties, marjoram can do wonders for your muscles. Before you start, rub this essential oil thoroughly on your legs, arms or back, to soothe aches, and to release tension in your muscles. Having stiff or tense muscles while working out can lead to muscle damage, and increases the soreness and aches you’ll have after a workout.
Combinations: Try blending marjoram, lavender, thyme, peppermint and coconut oil into a rub to apply to your muscles. This blend is calming and soothing to your mind and muscls. It is especially useful when doing yoga or Pilates, or any workout that challenges your elasticity.
If your muscles feel especially tired after a workout, change the blend to marjoram, thyme, peppermint, coconut, lemon, roman chamomile, and cypress oil.
Essential Oils During workout
Staying hydrated is absolutely essential during a workout. Adding a few drops of different essential oils to your water can have helpful effects as you work
Citrus oils – Sipping water with citrus oils will keep you more hydrated than plain water. The Essential Oils give additional hydration and the flavor encourages you to drink more.
Peppermint – Adding a few drops of peppermint Essential Oil to your water keeps you alert and focused during your workout, and can increase energy.
Essential Oils Post-workout
Lemongrass – Applying lemongrass Essential Oil after a workout helps decrease muscle inflammation. Using this oil means that you can workout the next day without fighting extreme aches.
Combinations – Add drops of marjoram to your post-workout bath, together with some lavender, and roman chamomile oil, with some Epsom salt. The useful properties of the oils, combined with the magnesium rich Epsom salt makes the perfect recovery concoction. This combination eases aches, releases remaining tension in the body so that you don’t wake up feeling the aches of yesterday’s workout. It also re-energizes your body and brings your body back to normal, easing the increase of certain chemicals in your body that comes from working out.
So here’s our round up of the key information on our favorite Essential Oils:
Lemon essential oil:
Lemon essential oil is one of the best oils. It boosts your energy levels after a workout and helps fight the exhaustion that comes after a good workout session. Lemon Essential Oil also stimulates fat loss. As a citrus oil, it strengthens your immune system, and is very useful as a detox oil. Lemon Essential Oil is a mood enhancer. It can help with the bouncing emotions that can come from the shift of chemicals in your body during and after a workout.
Peppermint essential oil:
This oil is good for “Pre” and post-workout! It lowers effort perception during a workout, so that you are able to push harder, and maintain high energy levels. This helps you improve your workout and conquer mental blocks. Post-workout, peppermint Essential Oil relieves tight, aching muscles. It’s useful for soothing bruises that you may get during your workout. It can also aid mental clarity, allowing you to relax and recover more quickly. Peppermint Essential Oil can be inhaled, added to water, or applied to an affected area.
Eucalyptus essential oil:
This Essential Oil acts as an anti-inflammatory, which makes it perfect for workout recovery. Exercises often cause muscle strain and micro-tears, causing inflammation. Eucalyptus Essential Oil can reduce that inflammation and decrease the pain. Add the oil to a lotion or massage oil, and massage it into your muscles after a workout. Be sure to rub in a gentle motion, sweeping toward the heart so that you’re removing lactic acid buildup.
For more information on Essential Oils check out our article Where to Buy Essential Oils!
