All of us, at some point of our lives have experienced or will experience some sort of muscle problems. It can be confusing and dysfunctional to suffer from muscular weakness, so it is natural to wonder what remedies you can try out to deal with the problem of muscular weakness. This blog will discuss all the ABCs of muscular weakness – from what it is, what can cause it, symptoms, remedies, and prevention tips, enabling you to make informed choices for the better health of your muscles.

What is muscular weakness?

When you put in full effort to move or use your muscle and it doesn’t work optimally, you experience what we term “muscular weakness”. This experience of weakness in your muscles can be experienced in varied forms, depending on your dispositions and causes for said problem.

For example, after a long hard day, you might experience muscle tiredness, where your muscles feel tired and strained. However, though tired, they can still function to their ability. Another variation of muscle problems is muscle fatigability, which is a condition where your muscle can exert full force at first but gradually lose its strength, ultimately leading to muscle weakness.

Do note that these conditions are distinct. Muscle tiredness can generally be cured with some rest. This may not be the case for muscular weakness.

True or primary muscular weakness refers to the abnormal condition where your muscle simply does not function to its full force. It may even appear less bulky than before. It calls for a definite treatment.

In this blog, we are generally speaking of all of these three conditions, and suggesting simple remedies for conditions that are not too severe.

Causes of muscular weakness

Muscular weakness is a pretty common thing to go through, and one of the main reasons that is the case is because a plethora of reasons may cause muscular weakness. From working out for too long to not getting enough sleep to not eating enough protein – there are many things that can affect your muscle functioning.

Here are some common causes you may be experiencing muscle weakness:

Lifestyle

• Not using your muscles enough, i.e., living a lifestyle that is sedentary may weaken your muscles in the long run. This makes your muscles unfit and oftentimes your muscle mass gets replaced by fat. The result is often muscle fatigability and muscle weakness.
• Alcoholism, smoking, and drug abuse have all been linked to having an effect that may weaken your muscles in the long run.
• Poor sleeping patterns can lead your muscles to be tired and weak due to lack of rest.
• Working out excessively at the gym may wear your muscles out. Additionally, muscle injury may also cause muscular weakness.
• Dehydration is a common cause of muscular weakness. People who lack the habit of drinking enough fluids may suffer from muscle weakness from time to time.

Aging

As you age, it is inevitable for your muscles to gradually become weaker. This may not always be that severe for those who work to keep themselves exceptionally fit, but it does happen gradually. Besides age there are other factors also which can result in muscle weakness. Let’s have a quick look at some of these.

Disorders

• Anxiety
• Depression

Chronic Medical Conditions

• Heart diseases
• Diabetes
• Anaemia
• Chronic Lung Disease

Life Events

• Muscle damage due to injury (due to any incident)
• Pregnancy is a common cause for muscle weakness in women
• Having a stroke may cause your muscles to weaken dramatically afterwards

Muscular Dystrophy

“Muscular Dystrophies” are rare genetic disorders in which abnormalities hinder the production of proteins required for healthy muscle production. This causes a gradual muscle weakness and people suffering from these disorders often need a wheelchair later in life.

Medication

As a side effect or an allergic reaction, several drugs can cause muscle weakness This usually starts as sleepiness or fatigue. Some people may experience muscle weakness as a result of medications like interferons or anti-thyroid medication.

Symptoms of muscular weakness

The first step to remedy your muscle weakness problem is recognising it. It is also important to understand that your muscle weakness could be an indication of an underlying medical cause, which makes recognising it is very important. So, how do you know if you’re experiencing muscular weakness? Here is a list of common symptoms we have compiled that can help you know. If these are severe, you should immediately seek medical help.

• Inability to move or exert a muscle despite full mental effort
• Tiring easily, feeling breathless over limited muscle activity
• Muscle pain caused by any exertion on muscles
• Not being able to stand or walk for prolonged periods

10 remedies to get rid of muscular weakness

Muscle weakness can be temporarily caused due to an illness or simply lack of rest. In these cases, your muscular weakness may be treatable by our simple suggested remedies. However, if you’re experiencing unbearable pain or have been experiencing weakness for a prolonged period of time, take a diligent note of your symptoms and immediately consult a professional.

Without further ado, here are 10 simple remedies for muscular weakness:

Lots of rest and sleep

It is never recommended to strain yourself and exercise when you are facing muscle distress: the first remedy you should prioritise is rest and pain relief, or else you might worsen your symptoms. Many times, muscle weakness is caused by strain or a lack of sleep.

Therefore, if you feel muscle weakness: let go of whatever tasks you have to do at the moment, if you can help it. Take a moment to understand that you need rest. Spend the day in bed and sleep well.

Oil Massages 

Body massages using oils can be very effective for you if you are currently facing muscle weakness. This remedy specifically helps you in pain relief and simply waking up your muscle and nourishing it for action.

One of the biggest benefits of body oil massage is muscle strengthening. So, pick out a good body oil, preferably Ayurvedic or something designed for pain relief and muscle strengthening. Bask in the glory of a good body massage for a couple days and you are likely to see improvement.

Eggs

Eggs are a true wonder when it comes to nutrition because they provide you lots of protein in their little oval shaped build. Proteins are the building blocks for muscle strength, and many times an Indian diet may lack it, causing problems for your muscles. Try eating two boiled eggs in the morning every day.

Vitamin Supplements 

Some may have started to notice a weakness in their muscles due to their age. In such a case, it is obvious that your normal diet is not able to give you all the nutrients you need for strong muscles. Therefore, consider taking Vitamin Supplements to strengthen your muscles. Look for supplements that provide magnesium, Vitamin D, Vitamin B1, and Vitamin B12.

Hot Water Bag

As mentioned before, at the initial stages of remedying your muscle weakness, you may be experiencing pain. A hot water bag is a wonder in the muscle pain relief world. Even professionals use it in physiotherapy to improve the condition of the muscle. Hot water bags work great in relieving pain and built-up knots or cramps in your muscles.

However, always make sure you use hot water bags cautiously. Wrap your hot water bag with a towel before it comes in contact with your muscles. Additionally, do not use hot water bags for more than 5-10 minutes at a time. This can burn your muscles.

Ice

If your muscular weakness has been triggered by an injury – ice is the best remedy to reduce swelling and pain.

This is an alternative to hot water bags. While some prefer using hot water bags to relieve pain, there are others who find that ice is more helpful. Ice bags can help you deal with pain by numbing the area. They can also reduce inflammation in the muscle and overall make you feel better.

Strength-Building Exercises 

Once you have dealt with the pain and rest part, you can move towards actually strengthening your muscles through exercise. Sedentary lifestyles are the most common cause behind muscle weakness in the present day. Many of us spend our days sitting at our desk jobs, leaving our muscles unconditioned to activity.

This lifestyle problem can only be countered with regular exercise. Do not directly jump to heavy weightlifting in order to strengthen your muscles. Instead, gradually try out simple exercises and move forward as your muscles grow more resilient.

Meditation 

Stress, anxiety, and depression are all also indirect causes due to which your muscles may feel very weak. Stress exhausts your body’s resilience. Therefore, engaging in activities such as meditation and breathing exercises along with exercising can help you keep your muscles healthy in the long run. You can start your day with about 5-10 minutes of mindful meditation, and then follow up with simple exercises.

A Glass of Milk

Remember when you were little and your mother would not let you go to school or to sleep without finishing your glass of milk? Well, its time you become your own mother. Milk is a rich source of protein, calcium, and magnesium. As mentioned before, protein is essential for muscle health. Calcium on the other hand helps in maintaining your bone density. Magnesium is an ingredient that is good for managing stress and can calm your nerves.

Therefore, drinking a glass of milk goes a long way in preventing and dealing with muscle weakness.

Take Regular Walks in the Sun 

As you must have heard before several times, the Sun is the best source of Vitamin D. This Vitamin is responsible for the absorption of calcium in your body, which is why a Vitamin D deficiency inevitably leads to muscular weakness.

Taking regular walks, especially in the morning when the air is fresh and the sun isn’t too harsh, can help you maintain a good routine while your muscles bask in the goodness of Vitamin D.

Do note that this is good to do in colder months than in peak summer. If you take walks during summer, make sure to carry a lot of fluids with you as you may get dehydrated. Dehydration itself is a considerable cause for muscle weakness.

Medical Treatments

If these simple remedies do not help you and you are still experiencing muscle weakness frequently, chances are that there may be a medical condition behind your problem. Therefore, we advise you that you immediately seek professional help to treat your muscle weakness.

Depending on your diagnosis, there are a plethora of treatments that doctors may recommend you. Here are a few of these treatments:

Physical therapy

If the cause of your muscle weakness is autoimmune, neuromuscular or neurogenic, this method is considered beneficial and could be recommended to you. Physiotherapy is also a pretty useful alternative to look towards if you aren’t able to deal with muscle issues at home. Find a licensed physical therapist for some instant as well as long term relief.

Physical therapy strengthens muscles as well as improves mobility.  One might immediately notice a change in the ease with which you can perform daily tasks.

Occupational therapy 

If you’re experiencing weakness in your hands and limbs, you may be suggested occupational therapy. Occupational therapy is very much like physical therapy, but the difference is that it focuses more on strengthening your upper body: such as your hands, wrists, and shoulders. Another focus of such therapy is to improve fine motor skills, coordination and dexterity.

Medication

If you’re seeking a doctor’s help, chances are you may zero in on a cause for your muscle weakness and may be given pain-relieving and/or anti-inflammatory medication as a course of treatment. These are different from regular pain-relieving home remedies and tend to have a stronger effect.

Surgery

In case of neurological injuries, nerve compression, herniated discs, or hypothyroidism, your doctor may recommend surgery as a choice of treatment.

Assistive devices

Many times muscle weakness can be the symptom of something severe or long term, in which case using devices such as a walker or a cane can assist in doing daily activities. This can be recommended to you temporarily if you’ve just had an injury. Assistive devices are usually permanently advised for aged individuals.

The Bottom Line

If you are somebody who experiences muscle weakness, whatever the cause may be, you may experience trouble keeping up with daily tasks. Muscle problems can be quite distressing and therefore it is important to take proper action for yourself in order to tackle them.

Symptom management using home remedies can tremendously improve the quality of your life if your weakness is being caused by poor diet, lack of exercise, lack of sleep, or dehydration. If your weakness is mild and you have just started to notice them, then definitely try home remedies first.

In other cases, if your muscle weakness has become a long-term problem for you, it is important for you to consult a professional. Too much pain is also not a good sign. The sooner you seek treatment, the better chances you get to fully recover.