Sore after every work out and not improving

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I started going to Zumba about 3 weeks ago. I was sore after the first work out which I expected but 3 weeks later, after doing 3 or 4 sessions a week, I am still sore after every work out. I had thought I would be less sore by now as I would be getting used to the new exercise.

How many weeks do I have to do this for before I stop feeling like an old lady?

Replies

  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
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    I'm old too but if I start some new type of exercise, muscle soreness lasts no more than one week.

    Have you had a physical lately?
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,613 Member
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    The muscle soreness goes away after a few days until you do the class again, right? Maybe just try do do a little less impact for a while. Don't give up!
  • mnbvcxzlkjhgfdsa12
    mnbvcxzlkjhgfdsa12 Posts: 204 Member
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    Yes. That's right, it goes away and then I take the class again and it feels like the first time i've done it.

    I thought maybe stretching would help, so I took a yoga class straight after. Bad idea. I literally couldn't walk after that. I do yoga once a week but I guess the combination wasn't a good one!

    I think it's because the exercise is so different to me, it a lot of jumping movements. Hopefully my muscles will get used to it soon :-)
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    You are overdoing it. Pace yourself a bit and do some of the modifications offered by the instructor.
  • d_waters
    d_waters Posts: 11 Member
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    I've been doing crossfit since august...I hurt after every class... I learned to embrace the suck!
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,757 Member
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    I feel the pain from most cardio (jogging in particular) much more so that I did years ago. A slower pace, better shoes have helped a little but I am always sore after a decent workout.
    When I still want to work out but am still sore I will modify with either a long walk, elliptical, bike something with less impact.
    Crossfit is insane and I feel those for days
    Zumba can be modified if it isnt pleasant. If it isnt enjoyable you will be less likely to keep it up.
  • successgal1
    successgal1 Posts: 996 Member
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    You're overdoing it. Every time you do a workout you're stronger and in your enthusiasm you push harder again. Making you sore again.

    Make sure you eat restorative foods, not just "fun" calories that do nothing for muscle repair. And do the workout, you don't always have to challenge yourself hard, for progress. Give your body time.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
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    I think it's because the exercise is so different to me, it a lot of jumping movements. Hopefully my muscles will get used to it soon :-)

    impact stuff is a whole other world. i can recover from lifting in no time but my body takes weeks to get over jumping so i treat it differently.
  • not_a_runner
    not_a_runner Posts: 1,343 Member
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    I've been working out (Mostly via weight lifting) for almost 3 years and I still get ridiculously sore probably at least once a week.
    I just try to keep my protein intake up for recovery, and do some stretching and keep moving to help combat the soreness.
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
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    I started working out for the first time,nearly 4 months ago. My upper arms still feel sore whilst I'm doing push ups though they don't hurt afterwards
  • mnbvcxzlkjhgfdsa12
    mnbvcxzlkjhgfdsa12 Posts: 204 Member
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    Thanks everyone for the support and advice. I'm going to keep at it, but scale back to two zumba sessions a week and go back to the cross trainer for my other three weekly sessions for a while :-)
  • mnbvcxzlkjhgfdsa12
    mnbvcxzlkjhgfdsa12 Posts: 204 Member
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    I went to a different class this morning and the instructor said i should stop wearing trainers to zumba because they are designed to be nonslip and in zumba you do lots of twisting so you want a bit of movement on the floor. she said I'd damage my knees if I keep wearing nonslip shoes.

    This makes lots if sense to me now someone has pointed it out - and my knees gave been really sore-
    so I'm going to try different footwear and see if that helps:-)
  • cahubbard6421
    cahubbard6421 Posts: 769 Member
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    d_waters wrote: »
    I've been doing crossfit since august...I hurt after every class... I learned to embrace the suck!

    Totally different monsters. But the point you're alluding to is fantastic. Nothing that is easy is ever worth it. If the pain stops, you're not pushing enough. It hurts because you're slaying.
  • MelissaPhippsFeagins
    MelissaPhippsFeagins Posts: 8,063 Member
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    I went to a different class this morning and the instructor said i should stop wearing trainers to zumba because they are designed to be nonslip and in zumba you do lots of twisting so you want a bit of movement on the floor. she said I'd damage my knees if I keep wearing nonslip shoes.

    This makes lots if sense to me now someone has pointed it out - and my knees gave been really sore-
    so I'm going to try different footwear and see if that helps:-)

    Yep. That will do it. I was a dancer by hobby before I had kids so I wear my jazz shoes to Zumba. The first time the instructor asked me if I was sure that I wanted to do that before class, but she's never asked again.
  • jdhcm2006
    jdhcm2006 Posts: 2,254 Member
    edited January 2017
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    I think that being sore is a regular occurrence when you workout regularly, depending on the type of exercise you do.

    IMO the important part is if the proper part of your body is sore. For instance, when I first started doing deadlifts, the next few days I was feeling it a lot in my lower back which was my body's way of telling me I was doing it wrong b/c my lower back hurt. You're lower back does get worked in a deadlift, but it's not supposed to feel painful or super sore from what I've read, which means that my form was wrong. So I tightened up my form, and I don't have that pain anymore, sometimes I'll get a slight tightness, but not soreness.

    I had the same issue in pole. I was feeling sore/getting a bruise in a spot that shouldn't have been sore/bruised. The problem: I was positioning my body wrong, so the pole was hitting 2 inches too low on my body. I discussed it with my instructor, we worked on it, and now I have no issue with that move anymore.

    Find out what parts of your body the exercise is supposed to target, and if those areas are sore then you're probably doing it right. If something else is sore that isn't being directly targeted by that exercise you may need to reevaluate things and get some advice about how you can improve so you're only feeling it in the proper spots.
  • ticiaelizabeth
    ticiaelizabeth Posts: 139 Member
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    umm one tip would be not to start the class cold. Zumba can jump right into it, so a good warm up before the class may reduce soreness.