muscle soreness and effectiveness of training

[MariaS]

Hi everyone,

just been wondering when doing weight workouts how good of an indicator muscle soreness is as to the effectiveness? I've noticed that muscles seem to "learn" really fast a certain workout (which is why Cathe emphasizes changing things around so much), so that they don't really become sore afterwards. Should one always strive for sore muscles after a weight workout, or can a workout be effective otherwise too? Any insights on the subject?

MariaS.

 

[WD]

I pretty much think that muscle soreness is not the sure indicater that your workout is working. I rarely have muscle soreness. Sometimes when I start a new workout or raise the weights I get soreness for two to three workouts then it stabalizes. I still seem to get results. It seems just changing often, once you have been working out for awhile, keeps the muscles guessing. That is my experience anyway. I tend toward DOM so sometimes I may not be sore for a day and then be sore.
Diane Sue

 

[naughtoj]

From someone who spends a lot of time sore, I would have to somewhat say yes, you do need to be sore.

Simply, you get sore when your body does something it is either 1)unaccustomed to, or 2) an activity it is accustomed to, but at a unaccustomed intensity. I think if you are really...and I mean REALLY...following the principles of progressive overload then I think you should spend a lot of time sore.

I do however think nutrition, sleep, and training frequency also play a role. You don't want to do too much, eat too little (or not enough protein) or sleep too little. You gotta train hard AND rest hard.

I think people's bodies react differently too though. While Diane Sue may work out just as hard as me, maybe her body is just better able to deal with DOMS, I don't know. Sometimes I think the more muscle you have, the more predisposed you are to DOMS. Kinda makes sense, in that if you have more there to hurt, well......


Jeez, if I don't do IMAX in a month or so, I feel that brand new lock-up in my calves like I hadn't done it in years. I can take 2 weeks off of kickboxing and when I do do it, feel like a Mack truck hit me the next day. So...it doesn't take long for your body to "forget".

I wouldn't rely on the presence of soreness. BUT, I would track my weights to atleast make sure I am trying to increase every time. That is a really hard thing to do when you work out with videos. One of the biggest drawbacks IMO. Discipline yourself to do it if you have time, because after a while it gets frustrating not being able to remember your poundage on all the tapes. I work out at lunch with 3 other people, and we only have 1 hr max, and since Cathe tapes are all about that long, I have no time to spare. But, when I lift gym-style, you bet I know the poundage and I write it down and always try to progress next time.

Just my thoughts.......

Janice

 

[MariaS]

Thanks for your thoughts,

I have noticed the importance of nutrition and rest too. If I get enough of those, the muscles seem to recover much faster, and the soreness seems to pass quicker. The whole issue of soreness probably does vary from person to person, but writing down poundages to keep up is a good habit. I still have to get into that one.

Maria S

 

[trevor]

It's my opinion that if there isn't some of what I call "good soreness" then there is room for the individual to be working harder. That soreness comes from microscopic tearing of the muscles and lactic acid buildup. The tiny tears in the muscle regroup over a few days and that's what increases muscle size.
You can ease soreness by stretching while you lift and after a workout. Never stretch before a workout. You risk injury by stretching a cold muscle. Warm up by going at a slower pace for a few mins instead to get the blood moving.
Trevor