Exercise makes muscles sore, but research suggests that massage can help ease that pain, while also helping muscles heal faster. After research subjects performed a session of difficult exercise, they received Swedish massage on only one leg. Researchers biopsied muscles in each leg and found that massage activated genes that decrease inflammation and promote energy generation within cells, resulting in muscles that hurt less and grow quicker. The study was published in February in Science Translational Medicine. So, the next time you have a tough bout of exercise, conduct your own clinical trial and get a massage!