no pain no gain?

tataliciousd89

You should be sore, but functionally so. Ease up a little, not a lot and your body will adjust in no time. It took me only a week to stop being sore and I've had to bump up the intensity over the last two, but now I feel great and the soreness only lasts about a day.

meshashesha2012

getting enough rest and enough food (especially protein) is very helpful for me in terms of getting rid of DOMS. it's also important to get blood flowing to those areas as soon as possible so even if i'm ridiculously sore, i'll at least try to get in the pool to move around a bit, do some yoga, or easy cardio like the elliptical on no resistance and then spending the most unbearable 15 minutes of my life with a foam roller :laugh:

oh and another trick is to take an ice bath/cold shower then a warm one i generally do this in the gym anyway after a particularly tough lifting session and will take a cold shower for a minute or so and then hop in the whirlpool

rileysowner

The routine itself doesn't look bad, although I would tend to put the weights first and the cardio second. When starting with weights it is important to do it with a very light weight so you can 1) Get the form down properly and 2) So that your muscles can adapt. It sounds like this may have pushed you too hard, although ones ability to deal with pain and how much pain there is, is a very individual thing. Generally, just lying around and not doing anything is less effective for getting rid of muscle soreness than moving and getting them warmed up again. This does not mean doing an actual workout, but doing something that is active enough to get your heart rate up a little and get you sweating a little. Then when you are warmed up, stretch the muscles.

tabulator32

If normal movement causes you to wince in pain after a workout...fire your trainer.

"No pain...no gain" is a cliche line for athletes trying to push themselves or their friends, but it has no place in a beginner's mind where they should be concentrating on learning how to do the exercises properly and not trying to see how far they can push themselves.

The most common reason people do NOT maintain a new exercise regimen is trying to do too much in the beginning and becoming frustrated or injured.

Relax and build up from a small start. Even doing a few minutes a day, three times a week, is a great start. After a week, your body will let you know how much more it wants to do. Don't "push" yourself into anything until you have been exercising for several weeks and have a much better idea of your (now increasing) capabilities.

Just my two cents.

CindyBretta

I think that your trainer is pushing you too hard. If you are in pain for days after a workout, or even on the same day, tell your trainer that he needs to help you create an exercise program that works for your level of fitness. If he pushes you to continue the program you're doing now, fire him.

clickmaster

getting enough rest and enough food (especially protein) is very helpful for me in terms of getting rid of DOMS.

We all get enough protein (with very few exceptions) so more protein is not going to help anything. We should be consuming protein as a function of our total caloric intake. For example a typical macronutrient balance is 55/20/25 (%calories from carbs/fats/protein respectively). More protein will only be excreted or help defeat a diet by being metabolized. Protein is not going to help DOMS in an average person. However, a nominal dose of an analgesic (Tylenol, paracetamol, acetaminophen) and an NSAID (Aleve, ibuprofen, naproxyn) can help relieve the pain. They may be taken together because they are not synergists.

rileysowner

getting enough rest and enough food (especially protein) is very helpful for me in terms of getting rid of DOMS.

We all get enough protein (with very few exceptions) so more protein is not going to help anything. We should be consuming protein as a function of our total caloric intake. For example a typical macronutrient balance is 55/20/25 (%calories from carbs/fats/protein respectively). More protein will only be excreted or help defeat a diet by being metabolized. Protein is not going to help DOMS in an average person. However, a nominal dose of an analgesic (Tylenol, paracetamol, acetaminophen) and an NSAID (Aleve, ibuprofen, naproxyn) can help relieve the pain. They may be taken together because they are not synergists.

Actually a higher amount of protein has helped me with dealing with DOMS. I was sceptical, but decided to increase on the advice of a friend. Since then even when I have DOMS, and I workout very intensely with weights, it goes away quicker. I find MFP's default for protein is rather low, and while I think the suggestion most give of 1 gram/pound of bodyweight is probably on the high side, I would figure 25-30% of calories from protein is a good amount. It also has the side benefits of helping most people feel full longer.

AntWrig

I joined the local gym and was taken through my paces by one of the instructors on Wednesday who created a personal fat burning plan for me - cardio machines for 30 mins then weights.

My problem is that its taken me until today 3 DAYS LATER to be able to walk without hurting or move my arms without wincing in pain - is this normal? I feel ok today so need to go back to the gym but am frightened I'll end up feeling like this again for most of next week - my question is what's the point of doing the gym if you can only go twice a week because of the pain it puts you in

Can any regular exercisers give me some advice?

Cheers x

i hate trainers like this.

I prefer the minimalist approach. If you're new to lifting, i would suggest the "big 3. That consist of the squat, bench, and deadlift. Do this three times a week (M,W,F). This is a good rep scheme.

Warm-up sets
Top Set 6-8reps
3mins rest
Set 2 (-10-15%) 8-10
2mins rest
Set 3 (-10-15%)10-12
3mins res

Drop -10-15% after each set. Do this for 3 months and assess after.

clickmaster

"No pain...no gain" is a cliche

"No pain, no gain" is a fact. The slogan, however, does not refer to DOMS which is the subject of this topic. It refers to the "burn" which comes from lactic acidosis when training anarobically. The more burn, the greater the in-roads toward muscular development.


Good luck and good health!!

♠

clickmaster

Actually a higher amount of protein has helped me with dealing with DOMS. I was sceptical, but decided to increase on the advice of a friend. Since then even when I have DOMS, and I workout very intensely with weights, it goes away quicker. I find MFP's default for protein is rather low, and while I think the suggestion most give of 1 gram/pound of bodyweight is probably on the high side, I would figure 25-30% of calories from protein is a good amount. It also has the side benefits of helping most people feel full longer.

What you're probably finding is that more training makes you increasingly immune to DOMS, not more protein. More protein does nothing for DOMS in a normal person with a normal diet. And, because protein has the same caloric value as pure sugar (4cal/gm), too much can kill a diet.

Here's what the experts at the US CDC have to say about how much protein you need to provide to support your metabolic processes. --> http://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/everyone/basics/protein.html#How much protein You can easily get that amount of protein with a glass of milk and a chicken breast or piece of meat per day.

You may hear a lot of people tell you that you should have 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. That's a typical bodybuilder's formula and it's a gross over estimate. Most experts in exercise physiology use the following formula.

0.8 grams protein per Kg of body weight
-or-
0.36 grams protein per pound of body weight

Bodybuilders believe they need a lot more protein that nonbodybuilders because they are building muscle. That, of course, is just wrong because most of the protein we all consume goes to the maintenance of our entire body including cell anabolization for all organs, skin, hair, marrow, smooth muscle, blood and much more which has nothing to do with skeletal muscles. And, people who are not building muscle are still replacing catabolized muscle cells which means most of the protein anyone uses will go to other than skeletal muscle repair. So, if you're a 160 pound male and you need 58 grams of protein without strength training then another 10% would easily cover you for strength training. That would amount to 5.8 grams per day which would be 174 grams per month or about 6 ounces per month. And, six ounces of new lean muscle mass is a good number for the average growth of a 160 pound male who trains hard. Therefore, you can forget 1 g/pound and go with the 0.8g/Kg or 0.36g/pound and just add 10% if you're a bodybuilder.

If you're a total protein freak who really wants to make sure you have more than enough protein and you can handle the extra calories, then just double the amount from the formula. So, if the formula tells you to get 58 grams per day, make sure you get 116 grams per day. There's no way you could possibly need more than that and that's still well below the 1 gram per pound which bodybuilders use. Just remember that protein has the same caloric value as pure sugar (4cal/gm) so don't get too much if you are watching your weight. And, protein in food usually comes with other nutrients including carbs and fats so weight watchers should be careful.

Always get protein from food. It's the only way you can be sure you're getting dietary balance and the amount of protein you need as supplements may or may not contain the amount stated on the product label. Supplements should always be avoided unless recommended by a health care professional according to the US NIH.


Good luck and good health!!

♠

rileysowner

Actually a higher amount of protein has helped me with dealing with DOMS. I was sceptical, but decided to increase on the advice of a friend. Since then even when I have DOMS, and I workout very intensely with weights, it goes away quicker. I find MFP's default for protein is rather low, and while I think the suggestion most give of 1 gram/pound of bodyweight is probably on the high side, I would figure 25-30% of calories from protein is a good amount. It also has the side benefits of helping most people feel full longer.

What you're probably finding is that more training makes you increasingly immune to DOMS, not more protein. More protein does nothing for DOMS in a normal person with a normal diet. And, because protein has the same caloric value as pure sugar (4cal/gm), too much can kill a diet.

Here's what the experts at the US CDC have to say about how much protein you need to provide to support your metabolic processes. --> http://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/everyone/basics/protein.html#How much protein You can easily get that amount of protein with a glass of milk and a chicken breast or piece of meat per day.

You may hear a lot of people tell you that you should have 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. That's a typical bodybuilder's formula and it's a gross over estimate. Most experts in exercise physiology use the following formula.

0.8 grams protein per Kg of body weight
-or-
0.36 grams protein per pound of body weight

Bodybuilders believe they need a lot more protein that nonbodybuilders because they are building muscle. That, of course, is just wrong because most of the protein we all consume goes to the maintenance of our entire body including cell anabolization for all organs, skin, hair, marrow, smooth muscle, blood and much more which has nothing to do with skeletal muscles. And, people who are not building muscle are still replacing catabolized muscle cells which means most of the protein anyone uses will go to other than skeletal muscle repair. So, if you're a 160 pound male and you need 58 grams of protein without strength training then another 10% would easily cover you for strength training. That would amount to 5.8 grams per day which would be 174 grams per month or about 6 ounces per month. And, six ounces of new lean muscle mass is a good number for the average growth of a 160 pound male who trains hard. Therefore, you can forget 1 g/pound and go with the 0.8g/Kg or 0.36g/pound and just add 10% if you're a bodybuilder.

If you're a total protein freak who really wants to make sure you have more than enough protein and you can handle the extra calories, then just double the amount from the formula. So, if the formula tells you to get 58 grams per day, make sure you get 116 grams per day. There's no way you could possibly need more than that and that's still well below the 1 gram per pound which bodybuilders use. Just remember that protein has the same caloric value as pure sugar (4cal/gm) so don't get too much if you are watching your weight. And, protein in food usually comes with other nutrients including carbs and fats so weight watchers should be careful.

Always get protein from food. It's the only way you can be sure you're getting dietary balance and the amount of protein you need as supplements may or may not contain the amount stated on the product label. Supplements should always be avoided unless recommended by a health care professional according to the US NIH.


Good luck and good health!!

♠

That could be it, but seeing at strength training, and training in general is not something that I was or am inexperienced with, I can say that it is likely not simply getting used to it. I have experienced that in the past, and with higher protein I recover faster. I personally shoot for .7 grams per pound of bodyweight.

Also, the article from the CDC has to do with minimum requirements, not necessarily the optimal amount for a person. If I only had that much protein 1) I would be hungry all the time 2) It would not be enough based on my exercise load or intensity.

CindyBretta

The problem is, trainers sometimes forget that they are working for you, and it's not the other way around.

If you hired a person to paint your house, do housework, do your yard work, groom your dog, or most anything else, you would have no trouble telling them that there are certain rules they have to follow if they want to continue to be employed by you.

The same goes for trainers. If they push you harder than you want to be pushed, and you are having more soreness and pain than you find acceptable after a workout, they need to be told that if they want to keep working for you, they need to realize that YOU are the boss, and if they can't follow your rules for what you will and will not accept in a training session, you will find a different trainer that will.