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I'm so Sore! Now What?
Fitness | June 25, 2016
Your eyelids flutter open at the sound of your alarm. You lie there for a bit thinking about the great workout you had yesterday and all your ambitious workout goals for today. You sit up, take a deep breath, and swing your legs out of bed to stand up and take on the day. Then…ARGH!!! Soreness. Maybe it’s your triceps, maybe it’s your hamstrings, maybe it’s your whole darn body. But whatever you did yesterday you can feel it practically vibrating it in every muscle fiber.
Almost everyone is familiar with exercise-induced soreness. It’s sometimes called DOMS or, delayed onset muscle soreness, because you often don’t feel the soreness until the next day.
Many consider soreness to be an indicator of a truly effective workout. Indeed, I know some people who feel like they’ve slacked off in some way if they don’t feel pain the next day (and the day after that, when the soreness peaks and feels the MOST ouchy). But recent research is reporting findings that the link between soreness and strength gains is somewhat tenuous.
Soreness is caused by microtears and the resulting inflammation and its byproducts in the muscle fiber. When you “damage” muscle fibers with vigorous exercise or heavy resistance training (weights!), the fibers heal back together stronger and larger. This phenomenon is called hypertrophy. That’s why many people believe the more soreness they feel, the more successful their workout was. And there is substance to that. Microscopic muscle damage is the stimulus that starts the growth and strengthening cycle in muscle.
However, the NSCA published a well-researched recent article that explains, “Some muscles appear to be more prone to DOMS than others, and there seems to be a genetic component that causes certain individuals to experience persistent soreness, whereas others rarely get sore at all.”
Additionally, the publication goes on the say, “…high levels of soreness should be regarded as detrimental because it is a sign that the lifter has exceeded the capacity for the muscle to efficiently repair itself. Moreover, excessive soreness can impede the ability to train optimally and decrease motivation to train.”
So, sometimes soreness means you got a killer workout, sometimes it might mean that you’re just working muscles that tend to get sore. It might also be that you got a fabulous workout in, but you have a genetic tendency not to feel soreness. Or, perhaps you’re just really used to working those muscles in the particular way you worked them. And, clearly, too much soreness isn’t a good thing.
Ok, ok. So you understand why you get sore, now what can you do about it?
Many think stretching is the best way to alleviate soreness. However, intense stretching actually damages muscle fibers even further and can actually make soreness worse. Gentle stretching can temporarily help to relieve some of the stiffness and pain. Studies indicate, though, that stretching doesn’t really make the soreness go away long-term.
I’ve found that foam rolling right after an intense workout seems to help my levels of DOMS the next day. A foam roller is a great addition to your body care arsenal no matter how active you are. Here’s a more in depth discussion on foam rolling. And here’s one of my Power Yoga workouts combined with foam rolling.
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My Exercise Equipment
Bodyweight only | Exercise Ball | Hand Weights | Jump Ropes | Kettlebells | Pull Up Bar | Resistance Bands | Sliding Discs
Private Member |
helsinki, finland
Thank you Zuzka again! This was great. I agree with you: Foam Rolling is great and even better than stretching. I do lot’s of stretching daily but I found that it’s better to do some foam rolling and just a little stretch. Like you also said: “stay active” it’s true. Sitting a bit make the pain even worst. Love your workouts, thank you that u are there <3
Private Member |
uk
When I get sore I do absolutely nothing until I’m not sore anymore. To me that’s what makes sense. Stretching is painful on sore muscles so is foam rolling. Epsom salts in bath and maybe walking is as far as I go. I think sore muscles means you pushed too hard. Take it easy next time.
Private Member |
naples, fl, usa
I find active rest is best. Myofascial release is part of my routine. Personally I rarely get DOMS as I am consistent with my training.
Private Member |
ellijay, ga, united states
For the really tough workouts where I can feel the extra burn, I’ve found it helpful to use magnesium spray after stretching and follow it up with some essential oil. I have a blend for muscle recovery that seems to help a lot (a mix with Wintergreen, Peppermint, Nutmeg, Clove Bud, Thyme, Black Pepper, Oregano, Marjoram, and Helichrysum). It’s not foolproof, but there have been times that it makes the difference between being able to walk normally the next day vs. waddling! 😉
Private Member |
I use a very similar routine to help with soreness, epsom salt (magnesium) bath followed with an essential oil blend (I include plai, juniper, frankincense, and a bit of bay laurel as well to the ones you mentioned). I’ve also found this to be a helpful and deeply relaxing routine to look forward to after a hard workout. Neat to see your routine is so similar!
I’m also a huge fan of Jill Miller’s Yoga Balls, nothing is better for working out a kinky back and sore neck or for getting into trigger points!
Private Member |
mumbai, india
Not moving when being sore is the worst. I made this mistake several times, doing an intense lower body workout the day before an international flight. The soreness lastet for almost a week! XD
Private Member |
ca, usa
I find an Epson salt bath works wonders! Foam rolling is very helpful also. After the slide workout this week I felt sore in muscles I didn’t know I had. 🙂
Private Member |
For me, I’m not happy unless I am sore the next day and as far as activity when I’m sore I recover best when I do light stretches and a lighter than usual workout. You have to warm up those sore muscles and increase blood supply to speed up the healing cycle. Always listen to your body as it is letting you know what it can and can’t handle at the moment:) I always feel better after a workout, sore or not.
Private Member |
lethbridge, alberta, canada
Added in a heavier KB this week and am feeling it in the glutes and hams 🙂 I am really trying to just follow the schedule (finally!!) and do whatever is posted for the day (before I would add things on easier days or skip days too busy etc….). Sooo, I am really looking forward to PoYo and moving around today. My goal is consistency! Thank you Z team for being amazing 🙂
Private Member |
I’ve found consistency is key. When I’ve fallen off the workout wagon, I find the first workout after a longish break can bring extreme soreness for about 4 days, where I am hobbling about like an arthritic goat 🙂 Happily once that’s passed, as long as I am consistent and work out every day or most days, it doesn’t seem to matter how hard I push it I rarely experience much soreness. Funny that the times I’ve taken breaks are usually when I feel too busy to fit in or focus on a workout and that is usually when I need them most, for the stress reduction, the endorphins, all the great mental clarity that comes from getting your heart rate up and working out. Remembering these things helps get me past the initial discomfort that I know is coming after starting up again, I think of it as my pain buy-in for better fitness and the host of benefits it offers!
Private Member |
Foam rolling always helps, and lighter activity to increase blood flow, like walking outside, using the elliptical machine while listening to music, or using my spin bike with intervals focused more on speed than steep climbs. Jumping rope, not too intensely, also helps blood flow. I feel like the lighter activity flushes out the soreness and keeps up the mobility and flexibility, along with the foam roller and light stretching.