6 Creams & Gels That Will Help Relieve Your Muscle Pain

Whether you're sore AF after starting a new workout routine or you pulled a muscle trying to carry all of your groceries inside at once, we're all gonna have to deal with muscle pain at some point. Luckily, whatever you're stuck with, there are products out there that'll help ease your pain — with or without the need for actual painkillers.

When your muscles are sore, it's because you've done something to tear the muscle fibers. Repairing them takes patience, and no cream can really speed the healing process along. But they can certainly make you feel better — and able to function like a normal human — while you wait.

In particular, over-the-counter creams, gels, and sprays tend to use ingredients that cool the skin (e.g. menthol), warm it up (e.g. capsaicin), and provide some level of temporary pain relief (e.g. lidocaine, camphor, or arnica). Essentially, all of these work by overwhelming, dulling, or changing the pain signals your body is sending via receptors your skin. Pretty neat, huh?

Of course, every cream isn't going to work for everyone. So continue on to see some of our favorites and find one that's perfect for you.