After a good workout, it’s not unusual for you to experience muscle soreness – in fact, it’s typically a good sign. It means you’re making progress and worked out muscles you don’t often use otherwise.
Of course, having sore muscles can certainly make doing daily tasks a little more painful. So, what causes our muscles to get sore anyway?
When you engage in high-intensity exercises, it causes a pH change in the muscles you use. This can sometimes cause that temporary burning sensation you feel just after working certain muscles.
DOMS, which stands for delayed onset muscle soreness, is what you feel the next day or a couple of days later.
Often muscle soreness occurs when you do more reps or lift heavier weights than you do typically. DOMS can be caused by inflammation in the muscles as a result of micro tears. Chemicals released to stimulate nerve growth can also trigger discomfort.
The good news is that as your muscles recover, they become stronger than they were before.
While DOMS isn’t anything to worry about, it’s important that you know the difference between normal soreness and workout-related injuries.
DOMS is something we consider a good sort of pain. That all-over feeling of soreness is simply a side effect of a good exercise session.
However, if you feel sharp pains or a lingering, burning sensation, it could be the result of an injury. Soreness should only last a few days, pain is more intense and can last much longer. If you are in pain, you may need to see your doctor.
If, in addition to your muscle pain, you have brownish or cola-tinged urine, you should seek medical attention immediately. It could be a sign of rhabdomyolysis, which can lead to kidney failure if not treated.
While you can work out while experiencing soreness, it is important to give yourself some recovery time. When exercising, try shifting your focus to other muscle groups that are less sore. And, of course, make sure you get thorough rest.
Soreness is not a necessity of an effective workout. The more consistent you are with your routine, the less sore you should be. Your ability to recover will improve and recovery time will likely decrease as your body adapts.
