Nothing in my natural medicine cabinet gets used more often than my DIY essential oils muscle rub. This homemade muscle cream can be used on the neck, back and legs to help relieve pain and reduce inflammation.
If your family likes to be active or work out, this salve recipe will be your new best friend!
Its anti inflammatory properties help with tense muscles, sore muscles, chronic pain as well as pain relief for general aches and body pains.
The muscle rub recipe is also not hard to make. It’s formulated with nourishing oils without harsh chemicals so it won’t irritate the skin. You’ll need 4 essential oils, 2 carrier oils and your basic kitchen equipment to blend it all together.
Let me show you how!
DIY Sore Muscle Rub Benefits
Sore muscles can be treated with a simple homemade muscle rub. Natural remedies are usually easy to whip up and use ingredients you may already have at home.
When you’ve made your muscle rub, it is important to use it before you start feeling the muscles from getting too stiff. It is also a good way to keep the muscle spasms at bay.
How does a natural essential oils muscle rub benefit your body?
- Helps reduce inflammation in your muscles, joints and body
- Relief for tense, sore and achy muscles
- Cooling and refreshing sensation
- Penetrates deeply
- Simple to make
- Inexpensive to make
- Uses all natural ingredients
- Smells incredibly amazing
- Bonus points for prolonging the muscle rub application into a mini-massage at home
Best Essential Oils for Sore Muscles
In order to help relieve muscle soreness and body aches, the essential oils used in the recipe must have anti inflammatory properties.
Oils with the highest amounts pain relieving components are:
- Peppermint essential oil
- Juniper Berry essential oil
- Rosemary essential oil
- Clove essential oil
- Frankincense essential oil
- Thyme essential oil
- Turmeric essential oil
- Lavender essential oil
For my recipe below, I have picked 4 of these essential oils and have combined them for maximum effect. The goal with my blend is to help you relax tense muscles, fight inflammation in your body, and work towards effective natural pain relief. Plus, the recipe simply smells amazing, too!
Make sure that you apply the salve generously and rub it into the affected areas for at least 2-5 minutes. Massaging the area of pain helps improve circulation, which also helps to reduce pain.
How to Make Your Own Muscle Salve
It’s easy to make your own muscle rub with essential oils. In fact, if you want to know what you’re putting on your body, it is advisable to make a blend yourself. It is less expensive and doesn’t take much time.
You can make sure your natural remedy uses only pure and unadulterated oils in your recipe.
An easy place to start is my super easy, all natural muscle rub recipe that is wonderful for sore muscles.
Here are the items and ingredients, and the steps to follow:
Essential Oil for Muscle Pain Recipe
One of the best things about making your own muscle rub recipe is that you can customize it to your own needs. If you need more or less of certain essential oils, feel free to adjust as needed. Just make sure you stay with the total number of recommended essential oil drops.
Next, salves and balm contain carrier oils and bee waxes. The ratio between liquid and hard wax defines the hardness of finished products. If you do not like the consistency of your DIY product, increase the carrier oil amount to give your salve that softer, balm-like texture.
You’ll also know exactly what is in the rub, and there are no harmful chemicals or additives.
The ingredients I used for my do-it-yourself recipe are:
- Small round metal tins with lids
- A glass container or a small mason jar (or a double boiler if you have it)
- 1/2 cup unrefined coconut oil
- 1/4 cup grated and well-chopped shea butter or beeswax
- 15 drops Rosemary essential oil
- 6 drops Turmeric essential oil
- 15 drops Peppermint essential oil
- 2 drops Lavender essential oil
It’s quite likely that you already have some of these ingredients at home.
Should you need to stock up, Amazon has everything you need! I used the following products:
How to Make DIY Muscle Rub
Here are the step-by-step instructions to make your own muscle-soothing salve. It’s easy to blend the ingredients together!
- Warm about 1 inch of water in a pot, using low to medium heat.
- Place your double boiler and add all of the solid ingredients such as coconut oil, shea butter or beeswax. If you don’t have a double boiler, place a glass jar directly into the water.
- Bring the water in your pot to a boil and leave the ingredients to dissolve. Stir occasionally.
- Take the pot off the heat and leave the mixture to cool down slightly.
- Add essential oils.
- Stir the blend thoroughly.
- Pour your salve into round tins and leave them to cool down thoroughly.
- Store your homemade muscle rub in a cool place and use it up within about six months.
- Don’t forget to label your creation!
What Is This Muscle Rub Recipe Used For?
The muscle rub recipe can be used for a variety of things, but is most commonly used to help relieve pain and inflammation. It can be applied anywhere on the body that you are experiencing discomfort.
Use your DIY muscle rub for:
- Tense shoulders
- Sore neck
- Aching back
- After a workout
- Apply on your feet after a long of walking or standing
- For sore tendons on arms, wrists or fingers
- General muscle fatigue
Apply your homemade muscle rub on any sore or tense spot of your body. Note: make sure not to use on open skin, wounds or cuts. It would burn and hurt.
Test your rub on a small area before using more liberally. If you experience skin irritation, dilute the area with more carrier oils to alleviate the itching. Do not wash with water.
Final Thoughts
To me, using a homemade salve feels as great as (if not better) than applying a store bought alternative. It can definitely be a lot fresher of a product, and most likely smells better than traditional creams.
Our household has extensive experience with muscle rubs, since my husband has chronic back pain. We’ve likely been through about a dozen of commercially-made products. The only ones that we’ve really found effective, are:
- My muscle rub with essential oils recipe (made at different times with a variety of essential oils)
- Rocky Mountain Oils’ Tohi Complete Relief Muscle Rub (also made with fabulous essential oils)
- Super Salve Arnica Muscle Easing Salve (a powerful blend of Arnica and various essential oils)
I hope this helps you, and you find natural relief for your tired and sore muscles.
Rosie
Can I use cocoa butter instead of Shea butter please?
Emma Carter
Yes absolutely, that would work just fine.
Marybeth
Emma, I know where you are coming from. I too have been delving deep into essential oils and also working on becoming certified aromatherapist. I am always searching for information and experiences to add to my knowledge. Thank you for sharing with me. Marybeth
ellois
Emma,
I have a question.
Is this recipe asking for solid coconut oil or the liquid coconut oil??
Thanks
Emma Carter
Hi there, the recipe uses solid coconut oil. Thanks for asking!