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Zachary Gillen, Assistant Professor of Exercise Physiology, Mississippi State University

What are muscle knots? An exercise physiologist explains what those tight little lumps are and how to get rid of them

Those stiff, painful spots can take up to two weeks to go away on their own. Sophie Walster/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Imagine you’ve just completed a tough upper-body workout. Your muscles feel a bit tired, but all in all you’re able to go about the rest of your day just fine.

The next morning, you wake up and realize the back of your shoulder blade feels stiff. When you rub your shoulder muscles, it feels like you’re prodding a little gumball under your skin. Every time you try to move it around, the area feels tight, with slight pangs of pain.

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