Muscle Soreness And Recovery Tips.

It's been years since you've gone to the gym but today, you finally muster up the willpower to change your lifestyle. You're super hyped and right off the bat, you go to the gym and grab the heaviest weights you can handle and start going all out. Eventually, your muscles begin to ache, and you finally stop when the pain is too much. After a few minutes of rest, the soreness goes away and you feel good to go again. Same goes for running. The faster and longer you run for, the more sore your legs begin to feel. This immediate soreness, known as acute muscle soreness, happens when you work out very vigorously, causing chemical and fluid buildup in the muscle tissue. The muscle starts losing power and the soreness gets worse, but the soreness goes away after resting for several minutes. Then, 8 hours or so after your workout, you start feeling a different soreness in your muscles. It isn't too bad but it definitely hurts. 24 hours later, your muscles start get to REALLY sore, to the point that you can barely even move! This is known as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, or DOMS for short. If you're a regular into the fitness world, you're probably familiar with DOMS. But if you're new, DOMS can catch you off guard and even scare you away from ever working out again.

What’s The Cause?

 The cause of DOMS is from eccentric contractions, or when a muscle becomes longer while under tension. An example would be the descending portion of a biceps curl, causing the biceps Brachii muscle to lengthen. The exact cause of pain from DOMS is unknown, but the most widely accepted reasoning is that during these eccentric movements, very small tears happen in the muscle at a cellular level. Pain receptors in the muscles then send pain signals to the brain, and calcium builds up in the muscle, causing inflammation.

Any Remedies or Recovery Tips?

There are several ways to relieve the pain from DOMS, including a long list of things you can consume. A study in 2010 showed that the individuals taking supplements of the amino acid L-glutamine were able to significantly relieve the effect of DOMS. In 2013, a study showed that ingesting caffeine 1 hour before exercise was able to significantly decrease pain from DOMS on the second and third days following workout. The only catch is that you'll need to ingest 400mg of caffeine (Amazon.in), which is equal to about 3-4 cups of coffee. For late night exercisers, this might not be a good idea. Other supplements that have shown to help alleviate DOMS are Creatine(Amazon.in), fish oil (Amazon.in), Taurine (Amazon.in), Branch Chained Amino Acids (Amazon.in), and Citrulline Malate (Amazon.in).

Is It All About Supplements?

But to really alleviate DOMS, it's less about what you take and more about what you do. The best way to alleviate DOMS long term is to progress slowly into a new exercise program, giving muscles enough time to adapt to the new stress being placed. Going with lighter weights in the beginning is the magical ingredient. Over time, soreness from DOMS can disappear completely as long as the muscle is continuously exercised. Studies have also shown that self-myofasical release, or self-massage in the form of foam rolling, can alleviate DOMS as well. In a study, researchers found that foam rolling exhausted muscles anywhere between an hour to six hours after workout significantly alleviated muscle soreness the next day, making foam rolling a staple workout equipment for individuals susceptible to soreness. But the most important thing you can do in order to alleviate DOMS, especially when beginning a new program, is getting plenty of sleep. The body recovers from daily activities the most when asleep, which will also help in recovering from muscle soreness and DOMS. Not sleeping enough can cause DOMS to last longer than it should, so make sure to get all the rest you can! What other ways have you dealt with muscle soreness after your workouts? Please share your experience in the comment section below!

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