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Muscle soreness and recovery

dbb1967

New member
Hey gals,

I work out hard and am proud of my muscles. After most of my workouts, I begin feeling sore in the muscle groups I worked after 24 hours. The soreness peaks at 48 hours and subsides at 72 hours. From everything I've read, this is pretty typical.

The exception is my legs. I work them out hard once a week and boy do I feel it. Walking up/down stairs or bending over to pick something up produces little old lady moans and groans from my relatively young mouth. I know this is part of the muscle building process, but should I still be sore 4 days after a workout? By the fourth day, it isn't as intense as the second day, but still quite noticeable. I don't like taking anti-inflammatories because of some research I've read about potentially inhibiting muscle growth, but even when I do, they aren't very effective.

I do take glutamine and a drink a protein drink immediately after working out. My husband thinks I'm not getting enough protein, and that could very well be the case, but then wouldn't ALL of my muscle groups be sore for longer periods of time?

Don't get me wrong, I don't want the soreness to go away if it is indeed my muscles rebuilding, I just want to know if it's normal to have it for so long.

Today my abs are sore. Sign of a good workout yesterday. :)

TIA,
Dawn
 
No Pain, No Gain?
By Martin Rooney

“The aim of the wise is not to secure pleasure but to avoid pain.” —Aristotle

Over the last decade of training, I’ve had many people throw several different training “myths” out at me. Whether it was “lifting stunts your growth” or “eating too much protein shuts down your kidneys” or “too much strength will hurt your martial arts,” I’ve heard them all. Two myths I hear most often are regarding soreness and training.

People often think that if you’re not really sore after a workout, then you’ve done nothing. The sorer you are the better. People also believe that lactic acid is the cause for the soreness in the muscles a few days after training. I’m sure we have all experienced this post-training pain phenomenon, and some of you martial arts athletes out there probably even seek it out on a regular basis. However, have you ever stopped to consider what is really happening? Why is the pain present and what are the implications for your progress? Hopefully, I can shed some light on the topic and give you a different view on the often welcomed pain.

Recently, I was giving a lecture at the National Strength and Conditioning Association’s National Conference in Washington, DC. Before my speech, I got something to eat but realized there were no empty tables to sit. I saw a man sitting alone and asked if our group could quickly sit down because I was in a rush. After asking his name and what he was doing there, I found out that he was a top researcher presenting on the “Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness (DOMS)” and the current things we do and don’t know about the process. This was great for me because I had met a new colleague and learned something new, and it kept me relaxed for my speech which was only moments away. The point here is that in some way, every person is your superior. If you ask the right questions and listen closely, you never know where you’re going to get better.

The man’s name was Dr. Declan Connelly. He told me we’ve known for a long time that lactic acid is a by-product of activity and not the cause of pain following exercise. What we don’t completely understand yet is what causes the DOMS that occurs anywhere from 1–5 days after training. The most current theory is that DOMS is actually caused by the inflammatory and regenerative response of the body as a result of the microscopic damage within the muscle fibers caused during training. He also told me that a damaged muscle can be tender, stiff, swollen, and up to 50 percent weaker until it’s healed. There are many athletes hospitalized and some who even die every year as a result of exertional rhabdomyolysis, or too much damage. He went on to state some important facts that have been inconclusive in many studies out there such as the reduction of DOMS symptoms using methods like anti-inflammatories, ice, warm-ups, nutrition, stretching, and massages.

I’ve found that DOMS doesn’t discriminate between a novice athlete and a professional one. If an athlete at any level begins a new program, new activity, new exercise, or new intensity, there can be a large amount of DOMS that comes along with it. Therefore, the key to controlling DOMS can be found in gradual progressive overload and training consistency. By progressing slowly and allowing for the adaptation to take place, soreness will be greatly decreased with future training at the same levels. Keeping this in mind, the modern martial artist can control soreness with proper planning and consistency.

The only way I’ve found to lessen DOMS in the practical setting is with consistent training. Before, if you didn’t have consistency in your training or if you took a number of months off between a fight or contest, the doctor would propose that you work out hard with an initial bout of exercise, recover for 1–2 weeks, and then begin the full training program. This initial workout bout would stimulate recovery. After the initial soreness was gone, there would be protection from future soreness after just that first workout. This was interesting because most fighters jump right back into training and push right through after the first workout. As a result, they can hurt performance, destroy the immune system, and promote possible injury. By not jumping back into training too aggressively, you can help ensure that this doesn’t happen.

Everyone has heard or at sometime used the phrase, “no pain, no gain.” An important point for martial artists to understand is that there is a difference between the pain of DOMS and the inevitable muscle pulls, strains, and contusions that occur during combat training. DOMS will subside naturally, and you can train through this soreness (as many of you probably have) without too much risk of further damaging the muscle. However, this is not the case for pulls and contusions. These need to be closely monitored and training may have to be held back until proper healing has occurred.

I hope everyone now has a new view regarding the soreness we have after training. It’s a normal response to training, and although the damage is essential for growth, it’s also essential to keep it under control and know what’s happening to your body. Only by monitoring this soreness and understanding your body can you take your game to the next level. Now get to work!

Martin Rooney currently works at the Parisi School of Speed and Power where athletes come to get quicker, faster and stronger. Martin is one of the premier trainers for football and MMA fighters in the world. He was a member of the United States Bobsled Team from 1995 to 1997 and again in 2000. Martin trained at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, NY, and has represented the U.S. in international competition both Canada and Europe. ParisiSchool.com
 
Is this sort of like when you go in the sun for the first time and burn, but after that you just seem to tan and not really burn. Or am I just crazy thinking like this? LOL
 
From Iron Addict

Delayed onset muscle soreness is something that leads many people to the "no gain zone", and then forever keeps them there. Many wrongly believe that unless they are "tore up" they didn't stimulate growth.......they are in most cases WRONG! While there is nothing wrong with being sore, you need to understand that after you have done a lift for more than a few sessions you are likely to be less and less sore. Also some muscles rarely or NEVER get sore. My biceps and delts are some examples. I could do 50 sets for my delts and never feel a bit sore. Regardless they still grow well.

You have no doubt noticed that some muscles don't get very sore, while others always feel way beat-up. And almost everyone notices that when you do a lift you haven’t done in a long time you tend to get sore as hell the first time or two, then less and less each session. This leads many to either change their lifts CONSTANTLY (which can be beneficial to SOME people) or do more ad more sets/lifts/or use more intensity to ensure they get beat-up enough. In most cases this is simply not needed. Some trainees get sore every time they train, others only when changing lifts, and some people almost never, yet all these categories of trainees can all grow extremely well if the training and diet is properly laid out.

Your barometer of success in the gym should be an ever increasing load on the bar, not how “pumped” you get, or how sore you are the following days.

Iron Addict
 
Recovery work

So yes, we all get sore sometimes from training, but it is not a pre-requisite for muscle growth.

However, being sore for days on end is going to interfere with your training, and this is where recovery work comes into play.

Most people do this, they usually either

1. Don't train for days to recover

2. Hammer the muscles again and stop any recovery, therefore muscle growth

If you know you are getting DOMS, then you can train the same muscle group, however VERY lightly.

One of the best things for legs soreness is walking, just getting the blood flowing to the area helps to flush out all the lactic acid.

You can also do a light bit of leg work with reps, the operative word being LIGHT.
 
I have been getting soreness after running about 12 miles...burning and then lack of speed...It takes me 3 days to recovery...Im assuming this is lactic acid build up??
 
ice baths work wonders
we use them after a game to help with recovery, the next morning we also hit the beach waist deep and walk around to get things going again
glutamine and protein shake after training/game and before bed
you may not go to this length just for training but it works for many
 
Re: Recovery work

Tatyana said:
So yes, we all get sore sometimes from training, but it is not a pre-requisite for muscle growth.

However, being sore for days on end is going to interfere with your training, and this is where recovery work comes into play.

Most people do this, they usually either

1. Don't train for days to recover

2. Hammer the muscles again and stop any recovery, therefore muscle growth

If you know you are getting DOMS, then you can train the same muscle group, however VERY lightly.

One of the best things for legs soreness is walking, just getting the blood flowing to the area helps to flush out all the lactic acid.

You can also do a light bit of leg work with reps, the operative word being LIGHT.



Good thread.

my problem is that I've been hitting heavy weights for quads and hamstring in order to get them bigger. I have been sored for a couple of months now. Does that mean I'm not growing? It appears as if I have. I have been using light weights for so long and now I'm hurting.
 
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