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It's a common myth that experiencing soreness after working out indicates that you worked out effectively.
It only serves as a warning that you are attempting something unfamiliar to your body. You don't always have to be sore the next day after a solid workout.
Instead, pay attention to other factors, such as higher weights, more reps, or shorter rest periods, that might help you determine whether your strength training is effective.
Follow our advice to heal more quickly so that you can get back into it if you do feel sore.
So, Let's Get Started
Have you ever felt amazing after a workout only to struggle to get out of bed or walk the next day? Your training is to blame for the soreness.
Some people enjoy the sensation because it confirms to them that they have exercised effectively, while others may hate it because, well, it hurts. But is being painful actually a sign of a good workout, and does feeling sore prove that your training was effective?
It's not a terrible thing if you don't become sore after exercising. You shouldn't gauge the effectiveness of your workout by how sore you are.
Instead, pay attention to other aspects like your ability to lift greater weights and complete your workout more easily or add extra sets or reps to your session.
Why Do We Get Sore After A Workout?
So let's start by discussing why we occasionally experience soreness after exercising.
People often feel sore after a workout if they haven't used the muscles they recently trained in a while. This is the case if they are beginning an entirely new program or fitness routine.
The discomfort is just a side effect of your muscles trying to adjust to the new stimulus that you're exposing them to. This makes them work harder than they normally would, which can lead to minor tiny tears in the muscle fibres, which results in pain.
Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, or DOMS as it is more generally called, is what this is.
It typically shows up 24 to 48 hours after working exercise. Because of this, sometimes the stiffness on the second day is much worse than the first.
DOMS isn't always harmful, but it's also not always good either. If you're doing something new that you're not used to, it will simply happen to everyone. You'll be less likely to encounter it once your body has adjusted.
However, a lot of individuals think that soreness is a sign of an effective workout.
That is untrue.
It simply signifies that whatever training or activity you undertook hasn't yet become second nature to your body, and once it does, you'll experience less soreness, but this doesn't always imply a decrease in effectiveness. So don't worry if you wake up one day and they aren't there.
How To Assess The Success Of Your Strength Training?
Now that you are aware that soreness is not a valid indicator of the efficacy of your workout, let's look at some additional criteria you should take into account.
ARE YOU LIFTING HEAVIER WEIGHTS?
If you can lift bigger weights than you could previously, that is one of the easiest methods to tell if your strength training is working.
Reaching new personal records, adding 10 kg to the barbell, or using a 12.5 kg dumbbell instead of a 10 kg dumbbell are all examples of how you can use more weight when you are stronger.
In order to keep providing your body with something to adapt to, this usually boils down to progressive overload and loading the bar or dumbbell with more weight than before.
ARE YOU LIFTING THE SAME WEIGHT BUT WITH MORE EASE?
It's not always necessary to only lift bigger weights to see improvement.
If you're lifting the same amount of weight with the same ease and proper form as before, this is another observable indicator that your training is having an impact.
If lifting a particular weight used to be difficult for you but is now easier for you, something is definitely working.
ARE YOU ABLE TO COMPLETE MORE REPS OR SETS?
Increasing the volume of your working sets, whether through more reps or sets, demonstrates an improvement in your work capacity and muscular endurance.
It means that you can exert more force and for a longer period of time than you previously could.
CAN YOU PUSH THROUGH YOUR WORKOUT MORE COMFORTABLY?
Some exercises can be really difficult to begin with, but if you find that you can finish the same exercise more easily than normal, you're improving and starting to adapt.
This is just another indication that your strength training regimen is effective.
DO YOU TAKE SHORTER REST PERIODS?
You know you're doing something well when you can finish the same working set after a shorter rest period between sets.
It indicates that you're responding well to your program because you're giving your body less rest while still being able to push through your workout.
DO YOU HAVE MORE ENERGY?
Long-term exercise has several advantages, and having more energy is one of them.
You'll undoubtedly notice the benefits of improving your health, strength, and fitness even outside of the gym.
Not to mention, you'll undoubtedly notice that you're happier than before and that you have a spring in your step!
What Should I Do If I’m Feeling Sore After A Workout?
However, there are certain things you can do to lessen the affects of DOMS so you can quickly feel as good as new if you do experience it.
HYDRATE
While staying hydrated is vital all the time, it is especially beneficial if you have DOMS.
Your body generates waste materials and poisons as your muscles break down during exercise, which can add to your pain.
The main organs involved in flushing them out are your liver and kidneys, but staying hydrated will hasten the process.
FOAM ROLL
Self-myofascial release techniques like foam rolling can help to loosen up tight muscles and soothe discomfort.
Use a foam roller to massage the sore spots on your body, paying special attention to the trigger points.
Your muscles will relax as a result, releasing tension.
MOVE YOUR BODY
It's likely that when DOMS is affecting you, you want to curl up and do nothing.
However, it's possible that this will have the opposite of what you want. Instead, adding a little gentle exercise to your day can assist to relax the muscles and improve blood circulation.
Your muscles receive more nutrients and oxygen thanks to the increased blood flow, speeding up the healing process.
Avoid anything too hard, such as an intense heavy lifting exercise or a high volume session, as the emphasis is on fluid movement. Keep it simple by going for a leisurely walk or little jog.
Even a very light strength session or even simply bodyweight movements will get the blood flow moving if your DOMS isn't too serious, without adding more strain to your body.
STRETCH
For your body, stretching can work wonders. You can feel better by incorporating some gentle stretching to relieve the tension in your muscles.
However, you must exercise caution to avoid overextending yourself, which can undoubtedly do more harm than good.
Avoid stretching to the point of pain. That is the unpleasant type of pain that you should avoid experiencing.
Stretch instead until your muscle feels some strain, but not so much that it aches.
Repeat after maintaining the position for 30 to 60 seconds.
EAT SOME PROTEIN
You should already be getting enough protein in your daily diet, but if you're experiencing soreness, it's a good reminder to check your protein consumption to make sure you're getting enough.
Being the building blocks of muscle, protein is crucial for your body's repair and recovery processes in relation to your muscle tissue.
Protein sources include common meats like chicken, turkey, and beef. If you require a source from a plant, you can also include eggs in your diet, as well as tofu, tempeh, and legumes.
Can I Still Workout If I’m Feeling Sore?
Let's just say that despite your commitment to another training session that day, you wake up feeling somewhat sore.
When should you cancel your workout and when should you continue regardless of how sore you are?
Even when you're sore, you can still exercise as long as you use different muscles than the ones that are giving you DOMS.
Don't exercise if you are extremely sore and you don't believe that it will improve.
Being truthful with oneself about how much your body can handle is important.
It won't slow down your process to take a day off because you're sore. In fact, it will benefit from it.
How To Prevent DOMS
Don't train your legs again, for instance, if you had had leg day the day before and they are sore.
To maximise recovery time, it's actually advised that you avoid working out the same muscle area for at least one or two days.
Try to schedule an upper-body day instead. By doing it this manner, you can still work out while giving your body the rest it needs in the right places.
MAKE SURE YOU WARM UP
Any training session must begin with a period of warming up. In order to train safely and effectively, it gets your body ready for the exercises that are coming up.
Start by gradually raising your heart rate by performing some star jumps, jogging for a few minutes on the treadmill, or running on the spot.
After that, you can move on to energetic warm-up activities according to your training.
For instance, if it's leg day, warm up your lower body with glute bridges, bodyweight lunges or squats, and leg swings or lateral lunges.
If the day is for the upper body, concentrate on dynamic stretches for that region.
Your muscles will be prepared and ready to go if you perform an appropriate warm-up that is tailored to the workout you will be doing that day.
ALLOW TIME TO RECOVER
Reducing the number of days you work out will help avoid DOMS or keep it from getting worse.
This is because sometimes less is more. If you give yourself enough time to heal, you could discover that you can do even better on your training days.
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