Soreness

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CajunNino
CajunNino Posts: 269
in Fitness and Exercise
Sore all over from day 3 at the gym. This 40+ yr old body knows the difference in being sore and being in pain... so I'm not worried about an injury. What I'm wondering is if there is anything to expedite the recovery? Helpful suggestions from people who workout, please. :tongue:
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  • CajunNino
    CajunNino Posts: 269
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    Sore all over from day 3 at the gym. This 40+ yr old body knows the difference in being sore and being in pain... so I'm not worried about an injury. What I'm wondering is if there is anything to expedite the recovery? Helpful suggestions from people who workout, please. :tongue:
    Generally, water and time has helped....but then again, it was a long time ago. Anything else I can do?
  • kris4chloe
    kris4chloe Posts: 245 Member
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    motrin, if it is really bad i have resorted in using icy/hot or something like that. warm showers and stretching, and sometimes just some light cardio to get the blood flowing to the muscles.
  • iWaffle
    iWaffle Posts: 2,208 Member
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    Foam rollers are supposed to help along with some stretching and light warm up exercise. Other than that just get some rest for a couple days and hit those muscles again. Exercise is a surprising antidote to soreness.
  • DaveRCF
    DaveRCF Posts: 266
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    Sore all over from day 3 at the gym. This 40+ yr old body knows the difference in being sore and being in pain... so I'm not worried about an injury. What I'm wondering is if there is anything to expedite the recovery? Helpful suggestions from people who workout, please. :tongue:

    The more you work out the faster the recovery. Just don't overdo it. Mixing light and heavy days is a good idea. Also, don't forget to have carbs post-workout.
  • Sheila_Ann
    Sheila_Ann Posts: 365 Member
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    I've always been told to just keep working those muscles. But not to go over board.
  • MoveTheMountain
    MoveTheMountain Posts: 764
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    Hi there,

    I'm 44 (disturbingly close to 45), so I know your pain - literally. And when they talk about 'no pain, no gain,' this is exactly what they're talking about.

    The soreness is caused by lactic acid, and within 2-3 weeks, you'll notice it drops way down or even goes away completely. In the meantime, massaging the sore muscles will help, as will stretching them (even tho while you're doing it, they'll hurt even more.

    Glutamine is reported to reduce muscle soreness (5g/day), and it also helps muscle recovery overall. I take a lot of glutamine, and it's one of the few supplements that actually has some meaningful research supporting it. While I can't say if it's the glutamine directly, I can say that, this time around, my muscle soreness only lasted about 3-4 days after each workout (with day 2 always being the worst - 48 hours after the workout is when the soreness will really kick in, not the next day).

    This was rambling a bit, but I hope it helped. And like I said, before long, your body will adjust and you won't get nearly this sore. You just need to work through it. You might want to reduce the intensity of your workouts a little.
  • Goal_Line
    Goal_Line Posts: 474 Member
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    Water, Tiger Balm and a walk (start slow and as you loosen up lenthen the stride). Next time at the gym back off just a bit, and as you body adjusts to the activity level then increase the intensity.

    I stretch AFTER every work out, not before, before the workout I warm up dynamically.

    BTW - I know how u feel, I just changed my weight routine to a heaver workout and can really feel it the last few days.
  • skirtlongjacket
    skirtlongjacket Posts: 41 Member
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    Having a lite yoga class after an intense cardio/strength mix class made me feel better right away. Still felt the burn, but I could move the next day. It makes sense physiologically too as far as how the muscles heal. Try lite stretching and range of motion activities. Always warm up and cool down!
  • MoveTheMountain
    MoveTheMountain Posts: 764
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    Sore all over from day 3 at the gym. This 40+ yr old body knows the difference in being sore and being in pain... so I'm not worried about an injury. What I'm wondering is if there is anything to expedite the recovery? Helpful suggestions from people who workout, please. :tongue:

    The more you work out the faster the recovery. Just don't overdo it. Mixing light and heavy days is a good idea. Also, don't forget to have carbs post-workout.

    Carbs and protein: 2:1 ratio within 20 minutes of when you finish, or, definitely within an hour of when you finish.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    Sore all over from day 3 at the gym. This 40+ yr old body knows the difference in being sore and being in pain... so I'm not worried about an injury. What I'm wondering is if there is anything to expedite the recovery? Helpful suggestions from people who workout, please. :tongue:
    Working out sore muscles actually helps. Glutamine also helps.
  • bakatare2k
    bakatare2k Posts: 17
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    I just went thru the same thing, just did my first Boot Camp and i was sore for the next 4 days. I resorted to Tylenol and on the second day Icy Hot just for the pain. Both helped but really it just took some time to get over. I just did my second boot camp and now im not sore as much, I havent tried glutamine but people say it works.

    But overall i think taking it easier on the workouts and stretching should help.
  • juliemarie911
    juliemarie911 Posts: 46
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    Make sure to stretch BEFORE and AFTER exercise! This will decrease the soreness. Whenever I forget to stretch I definitely regret it after. However, some soreness is normal. Do not let it keep you from exercising! On days you are sore do light exercises and a lot of stretching. I also agree, massaging will help also! If your quads or hams are on fire- you can massage it yourself. Massaging in the shower also feels good too lol.
    ~Julie
  • ashlinmarie
    ashlinmarie Posts: 1,263 Member
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    I've found alternating strength and cardio workouts helps. Doing Cardio after strength (either right after or the next day) can help with the soreness. Also, I have heard that you burn more fat by doing cardio after strength. I believe it for one big reason:

    Last year, I was mostly doing cardio, with some strength but I biked everywhere so the cardio was all over the place. The most strenuous was before a strength workout. Now I alternate days and push myself more on my bike ride home from the gym than on the way there. I also started running. I weighed 10 lbs more than I did last year when I started and was fitting into smaller sizes.

    SO moral of the story, try doing cardio after strength and you should feel better and hopefully lose more inches as well (though I realize what works for my body might not work for yours).
  • MyNewZen
    MyNewZen Posts: 101 Member
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    Sore all over from day 3 at the gym. This 40+ yr old body knows the difference in being sore and being in pain... so I'm not worried about an injury. What I'm wondering is if there is anything to expedite the recovery? Helpful suggestions from people who workout, please. :tongue:

    If you want to use supplements the ones I have found best for recovery are BCAA's while you work out and a protein+carb shake right after (as in put the powder in a dry shaker and take it to the gym, then fill it up as you leave and drink it right away).

    You could also try skins, I have just started using them so i don't have a strong opinion yet but lots of people I talk to swear by them.
  • MoveTheMountain
    MoveTheMountain Posts: 764
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    Make sure to stretch BEFORE and AFTER exercise! This will decrease the soreness. Whenever I forget to stretch I definitely regret it after. However, some soreness is normal. Do not let it keep you from exercising! On days you are sore do light exercises and a lot of stretching. I also agree, massaging will help also! If your quads or hams are on fire- you can massage it yourself. Massaging in the shower also feels good too lol.
    ~Julie

    I can personally vouch for how true this is: About 2 weeks ago I did a leg and back workout, and I skipped stretching my calves afterward - trying to save time, needed to get to work, etc. Man, did I live to regret it - my calves have never been this sore before, and I've done this workout many times. The only variable from the other times I've done the same workout - and at pretty much the same intensity - is that I blew off stretching afterward.
  • MoveTheMountain
    MoveTheMountain Posts: 764
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    Sore all over from day 3 at the gym. This 40+ yr old body knows the difference in being sore and being in pain... so I'm not worried about an injury. What I'm wondering is if there is anything to expedite the recovery? Helpful suggestions from people who workout, please. :tongue:

    If you want to use supplements the ones I have found best for recovery are BCAA's while you work out and a protein+carb shake right after (as in put the powder in a dry shaker and take it to the gym, then fill it up as you leave and drink it right away).

    You could also try skins, I have just started using them so i don't have a strong opinion yet but lots of people I talk to swear by them.

    BCAAs rock - I take them. But what are 'skins'?
  • Xniecex
    Xniecex Posts: 39 Member
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    Foam rollers are supposed to help along with some stretching and light warm up exercise. Other than that just get some rest for a couple days and hit those muscles again. Exercise is a surprising antidote to soreness.

    Foam rollers most definitely help :)I they disburse the lactic acid... but drink lots of water too.


    Search for myofascial release.... works wonders :))

    Good luck!!! And dont give up....
  • CajunNino
    CajunNino Posts: 269
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    Thanks, gang. Great information.

    (The soreness just reminds me that I'm changing my life for the better)
    Merci beaucoup.
  • BOO2819
    BOO2819 Posts: 6
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    My personal trainer said your routine should always be Warmup, Workout, Cool down, then stretch...NEVER STRETCH BEFORE YOU LIFT... this creates tiny tears in your muscles and when you lift weights after it creates even larger stress on them, making them harder to heal. This creates more soreness. Ive been sticking with this for a while now and when im lifting, its hard to finish my reps and I definately feel the burn, but hardly any soreness the next day. I always also follow up my workouts with a protein shake. This helps with recovery. Happy workouts! :)
  • MoveTheMountain
    MoveTheMountain Posts: 764
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    My personal trainer said your routine should always be Warmup, Workout, Cool down, then stretch...NEVER STRETCH BEFORE YOU LIFT... this creates tiny tears in your muscles and when you lift weights after it creates even larger stress on them, making them harder to heal. This creates more soreness. Ive been sticking with this for a while now and when im lifting, its hard to finish my reps and I definately feel the burn, but hardly any soreness the next day. I always also follow up my workouts with a protein shake. This helps with recovery. Happy workouts! :)

    I've heard from several sources that too much static stretching is bad before a resistance workout, but that ballistic stretching is helpful. Statis stretching can impede performance, but ballistic stretching as part of your warmup is valuable.

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