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This homemade muscle rub is soothing and relaxing to sore muscles. Made into a convenient lotion bar for easy transport and application, this rub is easy to use for general muscle discomfort. With all-natural ingredients and pure essential oils, it is hydrating and nourishing to the skin, too.
If you are looking for a soothing muscle rub for pre- or post-workout, look no further! These muscle rub bars are just the thing you need to relieve joint and muscle discomforts at home.
Made with soothing essential oils, they can help relax the muscles and give your body a nice cooling effect. Plus, they will leave your skin soft and moisturized.
This recipe is complete with just 4 simple ingredients: coconut oil, shea butter, beeswax, and essential oils. You’ll be amazed at how easy muscle rub is to make!
Why You’ll Love Them
Soothe sore muscles: The essential oils in this muscle rub are soothing to sore muscles. This is such an easy and natural way to get some quick relief.
Convenient lotion bar: I love lotion bars because they are easy to transport and apply! Rather than bringing a bottle of liquid cream that can spill and leak, these bars are perfect for travel. They’re also great for quick application. All you have to do is rub the bar on your skin and allow your warmth to melt the perfect amount.
Nourishing ingredients: With shea butter, coconut oil, and beeswax, these muscle rub bars will nourish and hydrate your skin while your muscles are being soothed.
What Goes Into This Recipe
- Shea butter: Shea butter is one of my favorite ingredients for skincare. I make it into shea butter lotion and whipped body butter because of its moisturizing properties and benefits to the skin. In this muscle rub, it will also help to soothe joint pain and sore muscles.
- Beeswax: Beeswax allows the bars to hold their shape. It also helps homemade lotions and rubs lock in moisture by creating a protective barrier on the skin.
- Coconut oil: Another moisturizing ingredient, the anti-inflammatory properties of coconut oil may help with muscle pain and soreness.
- Essential oils: There are many essential oils that can help with achy muscles. You can use one of them in the muscle rub or use a blend to maximize the benefits. You can find recommended oils below.
How to Make Homemade Muscle Rub
Step 1: Add shea butter, beeswax, and coconut oil to a double boiler over medium heat. If you don’t have a double boiler, you can make your own by placing a small glass bowl over a saucepan of water and bringing it to a boil.
Step 2: Once melted, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly—about 5 minutes. Add in essential oils of choice. I use 8 drops of peppermint and 4 drops each of lavender, helichrysum, marjoram, and frankincense.
Step 3: Stir until all of the ingredients are well combined, then pour the mixture into silicone molds.
Step 4: Allow the mixture to cool and harden completely before removing the bars from the mold.
Essential Oils for Muscle Rub
To make the muscle rub soothing for the muscles and joints, we are using essential oils. There are a number of different oils that are great for reducing joint and muscle discomfort.
I’m going to be using a blend of oils for maximum benefits. Below is a list of essential oils that I recommend adding to your soothing lotion bars.
Peppermint Essential Oil
Peppermint essential oil is very cooling and soothing for the muscles. It contains menthol, which can help with inflammation, tension, and discomfort. Peppermint essential oil should always be diluted before being applied to the skin as it is very concentrated.
Marjoram Essential Oil
Marjoram essential oil is well known for the benefits it has for easing muscle and joint discomforts. When applied topically to the area of concern, it can help reduce stiffness, soreness, and spasms.
Frankincense Essential Oil
Frankincense is a very calming, soothing, and relaxing essential oil. Because frankincense can relieve tension and reduce pain, it makes a great natural solution for a hurting back, stiff neck, achy joints, and discomfort.
Helichrysum Essential Oil
Helichrysum essential oil is a soothing essential oil with anti-inflammatory properties. When applied topically to the area of concern, it can soothe and relax joints and muscles.
Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender is a well-known oil to help with sleep, stress, and calming. Just like it can help relax the mind, it can relax muscles and joints, and it is particularly good for pain and swelling. Lavender oil is a very gentle oil with a soothing aroma.
How to Use Homemade Muscle Rub
To use homemade muscle rub, simply rub the bar on your skin. It will melt slightly from the warmth, leaving a layer on your skin. You can then massage it into the skin, paying extra attention to the sore muscles.
This muscle rub bar can be used on the hands, feet, or body. The base ingredients are safe for the face; however, several of the essential oils are not. I recommend following a different recipe for a homemade face moisturizer and reserving this muscle rub for the body.
This muscle rub is designed to reduce muscle and joint discomfort, stiffness, and tension. You can apply the lotion to the area of concern as needed throughout the day.
Expert Tips
- For best results, I recommend using more than one of the suggested essential oils. That way, you get the benefits from multiple oils.
- Store the muscle rub bars in an airtight container out of direct sunlight to maximize their shelf life.
- If you live in a hot climate, you may need to store the muscle rub bars in the fridge during the hot months.
- You can use any type of silicone mold you have on hand. If you’d rather have the muscle rub as a cream instead of bars, omit the beeswax, whip the mixture with a hand mixer, and store it in a jar.
Recipe FAQs
These muscle rub bars are good for 6 months to a year. You can maximize their shelf life by storing them properly. You may also add an antioxidant like vitamin E or rosemary antioxidant to help extend the product’s shelf life if desired.
It’s important to store them in an airtight container out of direct sunlight to extend their shelf life. Be sure to keep them out of high heat as they may melt. If you live in a hot climate, you may want to store them in the refrigerator during the hot months.
Yes, if you want to make the muscle rub bars vegan you can use soy wax instead of beeswax. The wax can also be omitted, but the muscle rub will be more like a cream rather than a bar. In that case, I recommend skipping the silicone molds, whipping it like I do with my DIY body butter, and storing it in a mason jar.
Related Content
If you tried this Homemade Muscle Rub or any other tutorial on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Homemade Muscle Rub
Equipment
- Double Boiler
- Silicone molds
Ingredients
- 3 oz shea butter
- 2.4 oz beeswax
- 3 oz coconut oil
- 25 drops of essential oil, choose from the list above
Instructions
- Add shea butter, beeswax, and coconut oil to a double boiler over medium heat. If you don't have a double boiler, you can make your own by placing a small glass bowl over a saucepan of water and bringing it to a boil.
- Once melted, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly—about 5 minutes.
- Add in essential oils of choice. I use 8 drops of peppermint and 4 drops each of lavender, helichrysum, marjoram, and frankincense.
- Stir until all the ingredients are well combined.
- Pour into silicone molds.
- Allow the mixture to cool and harden completely. Pop the lotion bars out of the molds.
- Store in an airtight container.
I will be trying this blend of oils but instead of making a lotion bar I think I will try this in a carrier oil. Back in August I infused some of my dried cayenne peppers in olive oil. I will give that a try to add a little extra kick. My husband has horrible knee pain and inflamation after a busy day..
For the amount of oils and wax you have, the essential oils don’t even add up to 1% (72 drops); most pain formulas are 3-5%. You may need to increase the EOs to get relief. HTH
These things are miraculous! I made my first batch almost exactly the way it says, except I weighed the shea, beeswax, and coconut oil instead of measuring by volume. I weighed out 4 ounces of each one. When I was finished with the melting and adding the essential oils, I poured the mixture into empty deodorant sticks. It’s super easy to rub onto the skin that way, and it made slightly more than five sticks.
I fell back in December, and I’ve had a bum shoulder ever since. Other topical products alleviate the pain and stiffness for an hour or two at the most. This relieved my pain and stiffness all night long and into the next day. I’m never going back to the other topical products again!
I am so glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks alot for the recipient my god almighty guide you and protect you and your family Amin
Thank you soo much for sharing this.. my son (only 22 years old) was hit from behind while stop sitting at a stop sign. He was hit at 50 miles per hr. And now he is left with repairing the damage from that person. I will make this receipt you gave here. I hope so much it helps him ♥️