The cure for apres-ski aches and pains: cherry juice?

After breaking the seal on my Loveland pass yesterday, I woke up this morning feeling like I'd been run down by a truck, or at least a compact SUV. I can't be alone in having a few early-season aches and pains in certain cranky muscles that weren't in high demand during the off-season.

Then I remembered some advice I got from a wise old ski instructor a few years back: drink cherry juice. I forwent the ibuprofen, hit up the local natural foods market for a bottle of cherry juice concentrate, and took a shot.

I think it worked.

So I Googled "cherry juice" and found dozens of blogs saying cherry juice was a great natural painkiller, most of them citing research done at Michigan State University a decade ago. I also found an FDA warning letter to a cherry juice-maker who had apparently committed a "serious violation" touting the very same study on his labels.

Maybe it's just a placebo. I can't say for sure after just one shot.

Any other reader-recommended cures for next-day aches and pains, besides the obvious (i.e. Advil, alcohol, medical marijuana, ice)? Leave a comment with your best post-ski or -ride salve, ointment, and potion.