Teaching Zumba and Aqua Zumba six or seven times a week, you would think I would get sore muscles from that. Nope. This week I happened to get horrible neck and shoulder pain from sleeping funny. Have you ever done that? My guess is yes. So what do you do when you strain a muscle or wake up with a painful ache? I know what is my first response. Ibuprofen and Icy Hot! While I'm not quite sure how to give up the Ibuprofen, when I realized I was out of Icy Hot, I figured I could learn to make my own. 
I looked up several recipes online and kept finding the same one over and over just on different people's blogs. Surprisingly there wasn't a lot of variations or other recipes to choose from. At first I was discouraged because there were several essential oils involved and it seemed a little complicated. But then I was out and about and realized the three main oils were not as expensive as I thought they would be. So I bought my oils and figured I go the short cut method. THIS SITE is where the original recipe is posted including the short cut that I used.
You will need:
Camphor Essential Oil
Eucalyptus Essential Oil
Peppermint Essential Oil
Vitamin E Cream
Directions
I combined 4 tbsps vitamin E cream (found at Walmart in a 2-pack for $3.48) with 15 drops of each essential oil. The Camphor and Eucalyptus oils improve blood circulation to the area which is why you will start to feel a hot sensation. The peppermint oil will bring a cool sensation. Mix well and using your fingertips, work it into your sore muscles. Awwwww..... Feels so good! The more you massage, the more intense it will feel.
Another great trick for sore muscles is to take a hot bath with Epsom salt and Lavender. You can see my recipe HERE under "Bath Salts."
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