Insanity - Sore Calf Muscles

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SammyPacks
SammyPacks Posts: 697 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Bleh... if anyone has done Insanity or is doing it... you know the pain I'm talking about right? It can't just be me... I feel like every morning is a mission to get ready n warm up my legs to walk around... anyone have any suggestions to how they got rid of the sore feeling? Does it just go away? I'd love to hear some feedback :)

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  • addisondisease
    addisondisease Posts: 664 Member
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    protein, foam rolls, bengay, stretch, and walk.
  • seekingstrengthX2
    seekingstrengthX2 Posts: 771
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    Is it from running? Just the calves?

    Stretching is good, of course. Another tip I learned from my trainer is to get one of the foam rollers. It's literally a cylinder made of foam. You put your calves on it, hold yourself in the air with your arms and roll your calves back and forth on it. It is supposed to break up the lactic acid that builds up when you workout... the acid is apparently what caues the pain.
  • SammyPacks
    SammyPacks Posts: 697 Member
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    Thanks guys... I'll look into a foam roller now... and I'll stretch during my class some more :P and walk around on breaks :)!
  • SammyPacks
    SammyPacks Posts: 697 Member
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    Is it from running? Just the calves?

    Stretching is good, of course. Another tip I learned from my trainer is to get one of the foam rollers. It's literally a cylinder made of foam. You put your calves on it, hold yourself in the air with your arms and roll your calves back and forth on it. It is supposed to break up the lactic acid that builds up when you workout... the acid is apparently what caues the pain.

    Insanity involves your legs a lot... lot of jumping, running, etc... just wore on my calves I guess, I'm googling and foam roller now
  • steffy1724
    steffy1724 Posts: 24 Member
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    Yep I finished Insanity in Decemeber, and let me tell you after the first 2 weeks I was ready to give up because my calves and butt were killing me!!!! I thought I would feel this pain forever!! LOL but then the pain slowly started going away, as my body became more accustomed to the workouts....I am proud to say I finished it :D
  • DirtbikeGal
    DirtbikeGal Posts: 61 Member
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    Yes, I know exactly what you are talking about. Ive done Insanity 2x but with a year between and im currently doing p90x insanity hyrbid. Your calves will be horribly sore for about a month. You can do calve stretches like standing on a step with just your toes and letting all of your weight push down and stretch the calve.

    But this will be something you will deal with the entire first month while your calves build muscle. The good thing is it hurts like crazy throught the warm up but once you get blood to the muscles they will loosen up and feel better.

    Good luck!
  • sofaking6
    sofaking6 Posts: 4,589 Member
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    Try putting the DVD on pause for a minute during the stretching and adding in some good calf stretches..I notice Shaun T is great about getting a nice long stretch in BUT he does neglect the calves. As mentioned above, just standing with your toes on a step will help a bunch.
  • alEsnipS
    alEsnipS Posts: 1
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    Myofascial release techniques are the best remedy for the soreness that results from Insanity and P90X/X2. The soreness is caused by molecules called inflammatory cytokines (not lactic acid, which is commonly believed). There has been a great deal of research within the last decade showing that myofascial release can greatly reduce levels of these inflammatory cytokines and reduce muscle soreness. Such techniques include foam-rolling and deep tissue massage. I love my foam-roller, "the stick," and "S-hook" for these spots - the key is to find a "hot spot" and sit on it, slowly moving and finding others (don't just roll around). It may be a bit painful or uncomfortable at first, but if you breathing through it will allow you to release that tension in your muscles. Traditional stretching is good too, but not as effective for the kind of soreness that Insanity causes.
    Good luck with Insanity; it truly is insane!

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