Muscle's sore after the gym. Good, bad or meaningless?

It's Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_onset_muscle_soreness

Yes, it's generally a good thing and the best thing to make it better is blood flow to the affected areas, so if you can continue excersizing, do it. If it's really too sore then a good long walk will help it feel a little better. Also a long hot soak/sauna is helpful for relieving the pain.

I always describe DOMS as a good sort of pain, a reminder you've been working hard. :-)

I vote for meaningless, since some people don't get it ever, and I tend to only get it if I haven't worked out for a while. Currently I'm damn near uselessly sore from my first heavy legs day after a week off. I love the feeling, but I don't think it means that I killed it any more today than before I took vacation.

It's a good thing, and I love it. Just make sure its soreness, and not an injury. Hard to tell the difference, but you'll learn to. I actually hate not being sore the day after, feels like I didn't work as hard, when I'm not feeling it.

DOn't let it hold you back from kicking butt today though, working out is one of the best things to do when your feeling stiff and sore. I know its easy to just say, I;ll wait to for the soreness to go away, but believe me yor feel better after doing something.

... is being sore from a workout a good thing or not? Does it actually matter? I like to learn what makes the body feel a certain way so any info would be greatfully received! X

Short answer: Soreness is never good. It means different things, but I workout to be at my best at all times. I don't workout so I can't be at my best during other activities because I'm too sore.

Longer answer... When you start a new program, a new phase, or just start working out in general, your body is going through a shock period where you are probably going to be sore for a week or so. After that though, that feeling should gradually decrease. To be honest, who wants to be sore. Seriously? Lots of people say that soreness is necessary to indicate you had a "good workout". I would much prefer to look at my training log to determine how good of a workout it was, and happily go on with my day being able to walk up and down steps and lift my hands above my shoulders.

There are obviously going to be different levels of soreness. If you wake up the next day and your hamstrings are a little stiff, or your shoulders are a little tight, that's one thing. This is the type of soreness that you can push through, and it should go away after a few minutes of stretching or warming up. After that, it should be gone.

For actual pain (i.e. You are sitting in a chair and your biceps are throbbing, or you have lost the ability to lift your hands over your head) that's a completely different thing. This could be a sign of an injury (i.e. pulled muscle) or it could simply be that the body has not yet recovered from the micro-tears that occurred in the muscle during your last lifting session. In either event, REST is what is needed. This is nothing something you push through. Your body grows and gets strong while you rest, not while you are actually lifting the weight. So if you continue to push through as your body is trying to heal itself, you are simply going to slow down your growth. Think of it like a scab you get a day or two after you get a cut. Leave it alone, and it heals pretty quickly. If you keep picking at, causing the cut to reopen and bleed, it will reform but it's going to take much much longer.