It’s a myth that any single food can dramatically reduce delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMs), the sore muscles, and the stiffness you feel a day or two after a workout your muscles aren’t accustomed to. However, DOMs is a fact of life if you train with weights or some other form of resistance, although you’re most likely to experience it when you do exercise that emphasize the eccentric portion of a strength-training exercise. Pain, inflammation and soreness are all signs of delayed onset muscle soreness. Plus, you might feel stiff, especially when you first wake up in the morning. However, movement usually improves the stiffness.
Why Are Your Muscles Sore?
We don’t know precisely what causes DOMS, but it’s thought to be triggered by small tears in muscle fibers, which then leads to pain and inflammation. DOMS is inconvenient and can take the zip out of your step until it improves. An acute case of DOMS can also make it harder to give it your best when you strength train. You may have to modify your workout for a few days.
Although no single food is a cure for DOMS, there is evidence that eating anti-inflammatory foods may help. In fact, a new study finds that omega-3 fatty acids may help dampen the fires of delayed-onset muscle soreness. Omega-3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fatty acids that play important roles in human health.
Along with their anti-inflammatory benefits, omega-3s comprise the cell membrane of cells where they help keep it fluid. In fact, there’s a high concentration of omega-3s in the brain, particularly an omega-3 fatty acid called DHA and some evidence that these fats support brain health, but could they also help with muscle soreness after a workout? Let’s look at what a new study shows about omega-3s and delayed-onset muscle soreness.
What a Study Showed
For the study, researchers gave subjects omega-3 supplements three times daily for a month. Another similar group got a placebo. Afterward, the subjects took part in an intensive exercise training program intense enough to cause delayed-onset muscle soreness.
The results? The subjects who took the omega-3 supplements experienced less DOMS relative to those who took the placebo. Some research also suggests that omega-3s help with muscle recovery after a workout, but this study didn’t support that. Plus, in this study, there was no evidence that omega-3s improved muscle function more than the control group.
What other evidence is there to support omega-3s as a treatment for delayed-onset muscle soreness? Another study that focused on the eccentric arm curl exercise to maximize muscle damage found that supplementing with omega-3 fatty acids cut the degree of delayed-onset muscle soreness by 15% relative to a control group.
What explains the benefits? Omega-3 fats belong to a group of fatty acids called polyunsaturated fatty acids. These fatty acids block the activity of arachidonic acid that triggers inflammation and pain, so they may be helpful for other forms of pain. For example, there’s evidence that omega-3 fatty acids may reduce joint pain in people with arthritis.
Fish Oil Supplement or Fish for Omega-3s
While omega-3s aren’t a miracle cure for delayed-onset muscle soreness, they may modestly reign in some of the stiffness and discomfort you feel in your muscles after a tough workout. Unfortunately, your body can’t store omega-3s, so you need to consume them regularly, not just once in a while.
Should you take an omega-3 supplement?
Most people get enough omega-3s through diet, but if you don’t eat fatty fish or take fish oil supplements, increasing your intake of omega-3s with a supplement may be beneficial. If you go the supplement route, opt for long-chain omega-3s since they are linked with the strongest anti-inflammatory benefits. Long-chain omega-3s are abundant in fish oil, but you can also get long-chain omega-3s by eating fatty fish, like salmon and sardines.
The question is whether you can get enough omega-3s to have benefits through eating fish alone. If you choose to take an omega-3 supplement, talk to your physician first since they interact with some medications, particularly blood thinners. Choose the fish oil supplement you take carefully since fish may contain contaminants such as heavy metals and dioxins. Make sure the brand you take is purified by molecular distillation. There are a mindboggling number of fish oil supplements to choose from, do your research. Preferably, buy from a company that does third-party testing on their supplements to confirm purity.
The Bottom Line
Even if fish oil doesn’t dramatically improve the soreness you experience after a tough workout, console yourself by knowing that DOMS typically won’t last longer than 5 to 7 days. The discomfort usually comes on within 24 to 48 hours after a workout and peaks after a day or two before gradually subsiding. When DOMS is at its peak, you may need to modify your workout but keep moving. Staying physically active reduces muscle stiffness and discomfort. Try doing gentle stretching exercises, use a foam roller, or get a massage. Studies support the effectiveness of massage for reducing delayed-onset muscle soreness, too. So, give your muscles the benefit of a post-workout massage. Consider it a treat to yourself!
References:
- Jouris KB, McDaniel JL, Weiss EP. The Effect of Omega-3 Fatty Acid Supplementation on the Inflammatory Response to eccentric strength exercise. J Sports Sci Med. 2011 Sep 1;10(3):432-8. PMID: 24150614; PMCID: PMC3737804.
- Tartibian B, Maleki BH, Abbasi A. The effects of ingestion of omega-3 fatty acids on perceived pain and external symptoms of delayed onset muscle soreness in untrained men. Clin J Sport Med. 2009 Mar;19(2):115-9. doi: 10.1097/JSM.0b013e31819b51b3. PMID: 19451765.
- Jouris KB, McDaniel JL, Weiss EP. The Effect of Omega-3 Fatty Acid Supplementation on the Inflammatory Response to eccentric strength exercise. J Sports Sci Med. 2011 Sep 1;10(3):432-8. PMID: 24150614; PMCID: PMC3737804.
- Journal of Exercise Rehabilitation 2014; 10(6): 349-356.Published online: December 31, 2014.
- Dyall SC. Long-chain omega-3 fatty acids and the brain: a review of the independent and shared effects of EPA, DPA and DHA. Front Aging Neurosci. 2015;7:52. Published 2015 Apr 21. doi:10.3389/fnagi.2015.00052.
- com. “The Facts on Omega-3 Fatty Acids”
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