In this post I explain what delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is and how to reduce it.
So you hit the gym for the first time in a long time. You’re proud you made it in and can’t wait to get back into a routine and see results.
After crushing weights while listening to your favorite tunes, you drive home feeling pumped up, strong, clear headed, calm, and accomplished.
At home you eat a big meal and go to bed.
You go to bed visualizing your new muscles and look forward to training again tomorrow.
You drift off and dream of people admiring your hard-earned physique. You sleep like a baby though the night until the the alarm goes off the next morning.
You reach to hit the snooze button and yelp in pain because your arms feel like they were slammed by a sledgehammer.
That’s DOMS; a deep muscle soreness that’s downright painful.
Don’t worry, DOMS just means your muscles got a great workout. You shook out the cobwebs and beat the dust off the joints.
It also means that your morning routine just become a gauntlet.
Washing your hair makes your shoulders scream. Brush your teeth and your biceps ache. Taking the stairs feels like the end of a three-day march up Machu Picchu.
Even squatting on the toilet makes you contemplate just sitting their for the rest of the day. Maybe your legs will go numb and dull the pain in your hammies.
Like The Thinker, you sit on your throne assessing the damage:
Is it a sharp pain? A dull pain? I don’t know. It just fucking hurts.
Welcome to the world of DOMS.
Some people claim that you must get sore after a workout in order for it to be effective.
This is true to an extent. We’ll cover that topic another time. For now, we’ll discuss Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS)? Plus, how to deal with it, and why you want it.
What is DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness)?
DOMS is the muscle pain you feel after hard exercise.
When you train above your current exertion threshold, your body breaks down from the stress.
When the stress subsides, your body rebuilds the broken muscles, making them bigger and stronger than before.
DOMS sets in about 24 hours after a workout and typically lasts a day or two.
This is completely normal, especially if you’re a newbie.
The pain is a wake-up call to your muscles signaling it’s time to grow.
DOMS is like a workout hangover. It’s similar to a drinking hangover, except you’re becoming harder to kill, rather than killing yourself.
How Does DOMS Happen?
Imagine your muscle is like a cable holding a suspension bridge.
The cable is woven from millions of threads, just like your muscle is made of millions of fibers.
Now, imagine heavy objects being placed on the bridge until its weight limit is exceeded.
What do you think happens?
The cable threads begin to snap, one after another. Threads keep snapping until the weight load is reduced.
When the damage stops, the engineers move in to rebuild the snapped threads. The cable is re-enforced with more threads to make it stronger than before.
DOMS occurs during this ‘down time’ while the cables are being rebuilt.
The pain and strain you feel is a side effect of your growing muscles.
The pain subsides when your muscles recover, and then you’re ready for more weight.
DOMS is a Measure of Workout Intensity
One of the biggest mistakes I see people make is not training hard enough.
If you’re not sore the day after a workout, you’re not training hard enough.
It’s a damn shame, too.
People put in the time in the gym but lack the intensity.
Then they wonder why they don’t see results.
Intensity pushes you past your limit and forces muscle growth.
For example, when you do a set of 10 reps for an exercise, the first 8 or 9 reps are a build up to the 10th.
That 10th rep should be so hard that it takes everything you’ve got to get it up.
It might take 5 seconds of maximum effort to complete the single rep.
Stopping before you reach this point is a disservice to yourself. Every rep leading up to this point is a complete waste if you give up.
To put it another way, the first 9 reps are practice, the 10th rep is game time.
Winning the game matters. Victory or defeat is determined by practice and BRINGING IT on game day.
Why DOMS is a GOOD Thing
DOMS means you kept pushing yourself after your mind said to stop.
Things got tough and you wanted to quit. But you didn’t quit. You kept going in spite of the pain.
Now your muscles hurt like a bitch, but you should be damn proud of yourself for pushing through it.
Sure, it hurts now, but you’ll forget all about the pain when the girls ask to feel your bicep.
Overcoming physical barriers through force of will strengthen your body and your mind.
DOMS Signals Growth
I strive for DOMS every workout.
It’s feedback that I am currently growing bigger and stronger.
My best gains ALWAYS follow DOMS.
When I’m sore I know I got the job done and my time in the gym was well spent.
I know protein synthesis is underway so I’m sure to fill up on good food to get the nutrition I need.
DOMS is an Initiation Ritual
Not everyone is ripped, but anyone could be.
Many people stop when it hurts. They stop when it gets hard
Too bad for them,
The body they want is on the other side of that pain.
Muscles need to burn down to grown bigger.
Some people never experience DOMS. They feel the burn and quit.
My advice:
Don’t be so eager to end a set. Hang out in the heat for a little while.
DOMS Signals Testosterone Production
If you’re a beginning trainer, experiencing DOMS mean you have also triggered a flood of natural growth hormone.
The increase of free testosterone coursing through your veins will further enhance your muscular development.
DOMS Does Not Mean You are Overtraining
Some people in the fitness industry say you don’t need DOMS to progress.
If you want to listen to them, fine.
But I’ve never got anywhere fast without intensity.
My take is shitty trainers say DOMS isn’t necessary for muscle growth. These guys pander to the masses because they know most people aren’t intense by nature.
Saying words like ‘hard’ and ‘intense’ intimidate folks.
Making fitness seem easy means people will agree, share it on facebook, get a few likes and feel good about promoting watered-down fitness theory.
All without ever picking up a weight.
I take a different approach:
You can take a day or a year to read the same book. But, which will benefit you more?
Avoid Under-Recovery
Many beginners train and feel the pain for days after their workout.
This pain is normal.
I’ve had DOMS last four days in some cases.
The days following that first workout can be brutal.
So brutal in fact, that many would-be studs give up.
DOMS will be worse if you don’t eat right.
Make sure you get three square meals a day with fresh meat, vegetables, rice and potatoes.
A protein shake or two each day will help provide starving muscles the nutrients they crave.
How to Reduce DOMS
DOMS will naturally subside overtime.
Your body will adapt to training and muscle soreness will decrease greatly.
You can shorten the time you experience DOMS after a workout by recovering properly.
Good rest and nutrition will reduce the severity and duration of DOMS.
Eat whole foods and get adequate protein. Take liver tablets daily to help with muscle recovery.
You can avoid DOMS but I don’t recommend it, and here’s why:
The only way to avoid DOMS completely would be to start training with very light weight and increase the weight used in very some increments over time.
Doing this in such a way to avoid DOMS would take a very long time to see any results.
You are better of pushing your body 80-95% percent intensity, and enduring the muscle soreness that follows.
Here are a few ways to reduce DOMS…
Stretch to Reduce DOMS
Stretching wrings out toxic byproducts that are a by-product of metabolic activity caused by strenuous workouts.
While stretching it’s good practice to breathe deeply and deliberately.
Much of the waste produced by working muscles is expelled from the body through the breath.
Stretching keeps you loose, limber and improves recovery.
Steam Room and Saunas
Sweating in the sauna after hitting the gym is a great way to jumpstart muscle growth and recovery.
Sweating is the second way waste is expelled from the body.
The heat soothes muscles and joints. Blood vessels expand bringing increased blood supply to the muscle cells.
Ice Baths and Cold Therapy
Submerging in an ice bath or taking a cold shower is an EXTREMELY effective way to reduce DOMS.
While I was doing German Volume Training, performing 100 reps of heavy squats, my legs hurt for a week after a workout.
BUT, if I sat in the cold tub (at 45 degrees Fahrenheit) my legs were only sore for two days, and the pain was much less intense.
It takes mental fortitude to take the icy plunge, but it’s well worth it.
Just focus on your breathing and the cold begins to disappear.
Foam Rolling and Massage
Foam Rolling and massage have a similar effect as stretching and heat/cold therapy.
Get yourself a foam roller and check out one of the millions of foam rolling tutorials online.
A professional massage is one of my favorite things on Earth.
Massage is an ancient healing technique. Find a good masseuse and they will make your body levitate.
Don’t be Daunted by Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness
Some people look forward to DOMS, while others dread it.
Veteran weight lifters see DOMS as a good thing because once DOMS goes away they will be bigger and stronger than before.
Some people are so turned off by DOMS that they stop training completely.
Many beginning weight trainers are caught off-guard by DOMS.
Make no mistake about it, DOMS is painful and downright unpleasant sometimes. It is especially intense when you first start training.
Just remember, the body you want is on the other side of this pain.
And overtime the DOMS will subside in proportion to your sick gains.
Great article!!
Thanks.
Marc
Thanks Marc!