Muscle Soreness

[MNKeeper]

This might've been asked before, but the search feature didn't work, so here's my question:

If I'm not sore the day after I work out, did I not work out hard enough? My friends are always saying how sore they are after they work out, but I'm never very sore even though I'm doing about 3 sets of 10 reps with the weight machines. So I was wondering why that is? Thanks in advance.

 

[lurchandy]

Is your last few reps on your last set all u can push out. It should be!
I dont usualy find no mater how hard my workout is that im sore the next day, Day after that though is another mater. Day 2/3 after is when ull usualy realy feel it.

 

[Madcow2]

DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) is not an indicator of an effective workout. It will vary for individuals but honestly it's highly related to conditioning.

Consider the following:

- a new exercise gets you very sore if done hard, the next time you do it you don't get quite as sore, after a while some type of status quo is reached

- not working out and then jumping back in gets you very sore, but once you've been lifting for a bit it abates

- doing a ton more work than you are used to gets you more sore than usual even if the movement is one that you are accustomed to

- consider that training a lift 1x per week tends to result in consistent but moderate soreness whereas 2-3x per week results in little to know soreness once one is accustomed to it. Many in this forum will vouch that their very best strength and size progress has come from squatting multiple times per week with no soreness.

Very obviously, this is conditioning based and it's a self fullfilling prophecy. If you don't train when you have DOMS, you train less, so then you get more DOMS, which makes you train less. Your training should not be geared around this as a variable and unless you are very sore where it might cause an injury or issue, you should train right through it.

Also the best way to get "un-sore" when you are totally ripped appart is to train very lightly again, getting blood in the area and stretching it to help recovery and remove waste product.

Also, you might be interested in giving this a read. I promise you will find it worthwhile: http://www.geocities.com/elitemadcow1/Topics/Training_Primer.htm

 

[Illuminati]

This might've been asked before, but the search feature didn't work, so here's my question:

If I'm not sore the day after I work out, did I not work out hard enough? My friends are always saying how sore they are after they work out, but I'm never very sore even though I'm doing about 3 sets of 10 reps with the weight machines. So I was wondering why that is? Thanks in advance.

soreness is not an indicator of how hard you work out.

 

[nodiggitydave]

anyone fine the day after they work out, then sore the day after :S?

 

[ZGzaZ]

I haven't been sore since the first week on starr's 5x5, at all. And Ive gained 25lbs and increased my weights almost 100lbs in all lifts since starting, so no, it's not an indication of how hard you worked, or if you will grow.

Madcow's explanation was perfect.

 

[Madcow2]

anyone fine the day after they work out, then sore the day after :S?

Unless you worked out late at night, the 48 hour onset tends to be some major soreness where you get sore to the touch. That's not where you want to be as it tends to cripple your movement and requires a lengthy period to recover from (active recovery is really important if that happens - unless you happen to like sitting on your ass for a few days and begin unable to straighten your limbs).

 

[stevius]

I partially agree- if your muscles are used to doing a certain exercise on a regular basis, you'll experience no soreness. Although when I go into the gym I try to improve my performance. Sometimes I will try harder to do one more rep or use a little more weight, which my body is unaccustomed to. This IS an indication of hard work, just as if you had never picked up a weight before. You're going from 0 work to a 100% in one big leap. The only problem is that it is counterproductive going to exhaustion in so little time. If you're an experienced lifter you will know that if you don't pace yourself your poundages go backwards.

I might not be very sore the day after but my muscles certainly feel different. I'm not saying that in a bad way: If you get struck by lightning I hear your muscles contract very strongly and your muscles will feel 'toasted', but in order to adapt you must first create a situation for your muscles to adapt to- only not so extreme that you won't be able to walk for days.

Strike a happy balance!

 

[b fold the truth]

So much depends on you and what you are doing both in and out of the gym.

I did notice that you said that you were using a machine. Machines do not make me sore at all, really no matter how hard I push myself. What kind of machines are you using?

Is your intensity the same as theirs?

Pre and post workout nutrition?

Sleep?

Body type?

 

[MNKeeper]

^ Um... the company that makes the machines is Cybex if I remember right. I dunno how I would explain them.. they're pretty simple, just set it to the weight you want for that specific machine and then lift or push or w/e. They don't use free weights. That's another thing though because my friend who worked out using the machines at the same place said that he didn't get very sore either. So maybe I should stop using the machines so much and use more free weight exercises instead?

Is my intensity the same as whose? The people who have given me advice? I highly doubt it because I'm not a serious weight lifter or w/e, I just lift weights to try to get bigger and stronger for soccer.

Nutrition prior to workout has varied lately, but I just read an article and now I'm going to try and eat a power bar and maybe an apple before working out at about 3 pm. I drink Propel while I'm working out. After working out I go home and eat some meat (usually in a sandwich) and then some peanut butter.

Body Type- I'm 6'1ish, 168 lbs.

Thanks a lot to everyone whose responded so far, it's really helpful.