Sore from Lifting

cwolfman13

- stop skipping, it's likely exacerbating the issue.

- do a proper warm-up

- do a proper cool down

- do a lot of foam rolling

- drink a lot of water

- protein shakes don't cause weight gain and aid in recovery...proper nutrient intake in general is imperative to recovery (note that you don't have to drink protein shakes, but you need to get adequate protein...as well as calories, etc)

- stop taking muscle relaxers

- I pretty much always have some level of DOMS going on...it comes with the territory

- remain active on non-lifting days. I've found a nice easy bike ride for a good 45 minutes to an hour is a great way to flush out the legs...followed by some stretching and foam rolling

- did I mention foam rolling?

- get yourself a foam roller.

I would also add that the programming of your routine could probably use some tweaking.

yopeeps025

+ over 9000

Also how do people effectively lift heavy squat, dead lift, bench, and overhead press in the same session? That is immortal status.

It can be done, but definitely not in an efficient min/max manner.

So you could hit all of your one rep maxs for the four main lifts in the same session?

ninerbuff

I will definitely get a foam roller and somehow cram stretching into the schedule.

Should I be stretching before the workout or after? Please don't say both.

LOL. There is not enough time for tons of stretching and rolling, I'd like to be able to knock it out in 5-10 minutes tops.

Actually stretching and rolling DO NOT reduce DOMS. It may make it feel better (for some not) but stretching is primarily for flexibility and for warming up (dynamic stretching). Foam rolling still is theory, but there is no evidence that it decreases ROM, or performance.

Best thing for DOMS...........................movement.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

beckyboop712

One thing I noticed no one mentioning is: Skip the Ibuprofen. As much as it sucks walking around extremely sore, Ibuprofen and another NSAIDS hamper your ability to build muscle.
http://www.caringmedical.com/sports-injuries/nsaids-why-we-do-not-recommend-them/

I only take pain pills if absolutely necessary (headaches and menstrual cramps)

I myself do some walking or running to alleviate leg soreness and you can do arm rotations to help with your upper body. And of course stretching and hydrating.

ninerbuff

- do a proper cool down

Not saying not to do it, but there's really no evidence to show that "cool downs" effectively help with DOMS or for that matter decrease injury. Initially cool downs are usually for high aerobic exercise with lots of leg use and were designed to keep blood from pooling in the legs after the workout to avoid dizziness and fainting. Basically if you're just a lifter, you can just leave when done.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

shor0814

Lots of great advice but I will add mine anyway.

Ditch the muscle relaxers they might be aggravating the problem.

Protein powders contain aminos so take in more protein from whatever source. Take BCAA's if you can't fit more protein in

3x5 of 3 lifts or at most 5x5 for now. Too many lifts and reps for now. Once you get over DOMS you can change it up.

The protein drink is not causing the weight gain unless it is a mass gainer or has enough calories to mess with your calorie intake. I am guessing it is water weight because you are new to lifting and your muscles need it. Drink more water and let the weight come. It will settle down and your muscles need it to recover.

Not enough stretching (guilty of that myself) and nor enough warm up. You don't need a full cardio session but 5-10 minutes of fast waking or something to warm things up.

yopeeps025

- do a proper cool down

Not saying not to do it, but there's really no evidence to show that "cool downs" effectively help with DOMS or for that matter decrease injury. Initially cool downs are usually for high aerobic exercise with lots of leg use and were designed to keep blood from pooling in the legs after the workout to avoid dizziness and fainting. Basically if you're just a lifter, you can just leave when done.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Cool downs are for like anaerobic workouts? My cool down is walking out the gym to my car.

xmichaelyx

Some people don't get much DOMS; some people get really bad DOMS. I'm part of the latter group. If I don't work out for 3 weeks and then lift even light weights, I'll be incapacitated for 2-3 days, and sore beyond that.

Everyone has their dumb remedies for this (BCAAs, cooldown, stretching, protein) and none of it does a damn thing. All you can do is either start slow and ease into your big workouts (I never got DOMS when doing Stronglifts 5x5, because you ramp up the weight over the course of many weeks), or just live with it and work through it.

Good luck.

yopeeps025

Some people don't get much DOMS; some people get really bad DOMS. I'm part of the latter group. If I don't work out for 3 weeks and then lift even light weights, I'll be incapacitated for 2-3 days, and sore beyond that.

Everyone has their dumb remedies for this (BCAAs, cooldown, stretching, protein) and none of it does a damn thing. All you can do is either start slow and ease into your big workouts (I never got DOMS when doing Stronglifts 5x5, because you ramp up the weight over the course of many weeks), or just live with it and work through it.

Good luck.

I notice also with time DOMS does not hit as hard. Like years of lifting.

CardiacKev28

I take Met-rx L-Glutamine 2 scoops a day and it has helped me considerably with DOMS.

ninerbuff

- do a proper cool down

Not saying not to do it, but there's really no evidence to show that "cool downs" effectively help with DOMS or for that matter decrease injury. Initially cool downs are usually for high aerobic exercise with lots of leg use and were designed to keep blood from pooling in the legs after the workout to avoid dizziness and fainting. Basically if you're just a lifter, you can just leave when done.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Cool downs are for like anaerobic workouts? My cool down is walking out the gym to my car.

I hear it said all the time that people "need" to do a cool down after ANY exercise from gym member to even trainers who adhere to "old" information. Of course we see "cool downs" by competitors after every sporting event?:laugh:

Nothing wrong with "cooling down" and stretching after a workout. Point is that it's not necessary to recover or needed to continue great performance.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

ninerbuff

Some people don't get much DOMS; some people get really bad DOMS. I'm part of the latter group. If I don't work out for 3 weeks and then lift even light weights, I'll be incapacitated for 2-3 days, and sore beyond that.

Everyone has their dumb remedies for this (BCAAs, cooldown, stretching, protein) and none of it does a damn thing. All you can do is either start slow and ease into your big workouts (I never got DOMS when doing Stronglifts 5x5, because you ramp up the weight over the course of many weeks), or just live with it and work through it.

Good luck.

DOMS happens with everyone. One can be an avid lifter, athlete, etc. and then do 1 exercise they haven't done before or in awhile and get it. Why? Because muscle breakdown occurred in that exercise excessively. Muscle is ALWAYS breaking down and rebuilding throughout the day/night. To what extent will be based on how the muscle was used.

But I do agree about the remedies. Lots of anecdotal ones.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

AsaThorsWoman

- stop skipping, it's likely exacerbating the issue.

- do a proper warm-up

- do a proper cool down

- do a lot of foam rolling

- drink a lot of water

- protein shakes don't cause weight gain and aid in recovery...proper nutrient intake in general is imperative to recovery (note that you don't have to drink protein shakes, but you need to get adequate protein...as well as calories, etc)

- stop taking muscle relaxers

- I pretty much always have some level of DOMS going on...it comes with the territory

- remain active on non-lifting days. I've found a nice easy bike ride for a good 45 minutes to an hour is a great way to flush out the legs...followed by some stretching and foam rolling

- did I mention foam rolling?

- get yourself a foam roller.

I would also add that the programming of your routine could probably use some tweaking.

What would you consider a proper warm up & cool down?

I usually like to walk a couple of miles before we start, just for the calorie burn.

He always wants to jump rope when were done, but usually I'm looking at the clock knowing I have a lot of cooking and cleaning ahead of me, so unless I'm hell bent on a big burn that day I skip it.

dbmata

+ over 9000

Also how do people effectively lift heavy squat, dead lift, bench, and overhead press in the same session? That is immortal status.

It can be done, but definitely not in an efficient min/max manner.

So you could hit all of your one rep maxs for the four main lifts in the same session?

I won't ding you for not knowing min/max theory, but I'll elucidate this matter for ya bro.

Min/max is a strategic theory where you perform the least amount of effort for the maximum amount of gain. Min/max is a heavily analytical activity, and requires constant management and retooling.

Now, what does that have to do with this situation?

As I said, you could hit all of your LIFTS in a session, that's cake. Even my mom can do it. However, that's inefficient because you'd not be able to lift maximally. Practically, at best you'd be able to lift 50-60% of 1RM for the later lifts due to stamina. It would not be efficient, or fitting within a min/max strategy.

So yes, you can hit all the lifts. You can't hit max lifts though, or if you'd try you'd retard your progress on whichever lifts you do later in the session.

AsaThorsWoman

+ over 9000

Also how do people effectively lift heavy squat, dead lift, bench, and overhead press in the same session? That is immortal status.

It can be done, but definitely not in an efficient min/max manner.

So you could hit all of your one rep maxs for the four main lifts in the same session?

Because I'm new I'm still learning what all this stuff means, but it should be worth noting that I don't lift the maximum amount I possibly could during these workouts.

I've never had the opportunity to see what the maximum amount would be.

Barbell Curls & Military Press are 3x10 at 37 pounds

Dead lift, Squat and Bench Press are 3x10 at 42 pounds

That's enough so that it's hurting by the last few reps, and that I'm really, really pushing myself by the last few reps on the last set.

I'm not sure where my boyfriend found this (or if he didn't just make it up).

I talked to him about doing the Strong Lifts 5X5 and he seemed open to it, but said a workout like this is actually easier for a beginner like me.

Since he's obviously the one that has more fitness knowledge in the relationship, I can do my best convincing if I have a source, like another website, or a fitness guru that says do it this way for this reason.

He'll listen to what I have to say, but he'll review it more-so and be more open to it if he knows others are doing it, or reads more about it than I can articulate in an article or something.

KnitOrMiss

All of this is such great information. I'm looking forward to the continuing dialog. I made it through one session with hand weights because my apartment gym doesn't have bars (they would walk away). I was okay the next day, but the second day after, when I was to return, I just hurt so much I skipped. I can see now that this was a downfall, so I'm looking forward to jumping back in with all this! Thanks.

cwolfman13

- stop skipping, it's likely exacerbating the issue.

- do a proper warm-up

- do a proper cool down

- do a lot of foam rolling

- drink a lot of water

- protein shakes don't cause weight gain and aid in recovery...proper nutrient intake in general is imperative to recovery (note that you don't have to drink protein shakes, but you need to get adequate protein...as well as calories, etc)

- stop taking muscle relaxers

- I pretty much always have some level of DOMS going on...it comes with the territory

- remain active on non-lifting days. I've found a nice easy bike ride for a good 45 minutes to an hour is a great way to flush out the legs...followed by some stretching and foam rolling

- did I mention foam rolling?

- get yourself a foam roller.

I would also add that the programming of your routine could probably use some tweaking.

What would you consider a proper warm up & cool down?

I usually like to walk a couple of miles before we start, just for the calorie burn.

He always wants to jump rope when were done, but usually I'm looking at the clock knowing I have a lot of cooking and cleaning ahead of me, so unless I'm hell bent on a big burn that day I skip it.

I suppose it would be different for everyone. I do a quick jog for about 5 minutes to warm-up and then some core work (which I consider to be part of my warm-up) and some power work like box jumps or kettle bell swings...then I go into my primary workout.

My cool down is basically some stretching and rolling. I personally think it feels good, particularly for my glutes which tend to get really tight.

Does that all help with DOMS...I don't know...it seems too in my case but maybe that's just because I enjoy a good stretch (and flexibility is important to me). But probably the biggest thing is to just make sure you're moving on your non-lifting days, getting good nutrition, and plenty of fluids.

AsaThorsWoman

Is this a good foam roller?

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Gold-s-Gym-12-Foam-Roller-Orange/28132592

How would I do an exercise for the thigh? Not the outer thigh but the spot below your booty and above your knee.

dbmata

Because I'm new I'm still learning what all this stuff means, but it should be worth noting that I don't lift the maximum amount I possibly could during these workouts.

Yeah, with your protocol you can't. That could be by design, you're just in a base conditioning phase, or not a lot of experience building a progressive resistance program.

I've never had the opportunity to see what the maximum amount would be.

It's fun to do. Try it sometime.

Barbell Curls & Military Press are 3x10 at 37 pounds

Dead lift, Squat and Bench Press are 3x10 at 42 pounds

So, not trying to give you a piss up here, but those aren't great numbers. Curls are a bit of a waste of time for where you are, and definitely a waste of energy resources. The OHP is good, but you should be a bit higher than that, to give you an idea, the unloaded barbell is 45 pounds, you should be able to lift that no problem, just to practice the form of the lift. My mom's 63, minimally trained, and has no issues with the barbell's weight in the OHP.

DL, Squat, and BP... is that including the weight of the bar? Because if it is, you're doing all three of those at less than the weight of your average barbell.

Where is the progression? The extended loading? My guess would be that it's not that you're pushing yourself due to strength, but due to stamina. You said you cook for your family, at 42 pounds, could you pick up and hold a toddler?

These are the numbers you are at now, what did you start at, and how long ago? From the numbers and the mention of pain, plus the easy access to pharms, were you recently hurt and are rehabbing from that?

I'm not sure where my boyfriend found this (or if he didn't just make it up).

I'd lean towards him having made it up. With that in mind, get on a decent program.

Check out the three most common I see mentioned here:
Stronglifts
Starting Strength
New Rules of Lifting for Women

Pick one and follow it. Stronglifts is one I like. you have progression, coherent pacing, and something completely missing from your current program, arm pulls. (Rows)

dbmata

re Rollers.
This is the one I suggest to friends and people I want to have a good rolling result.

http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=trigger+point+foam+rollers&tag=googhydr-20&index=aps&hvadid=31672028917&hvpos=1t1&hvexid=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=11755867353428502056&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_6huq9rh07l_b