We all know that exercise is important for wellbeing and health; but some of the after-effects can be rather annoying. The most common one is Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, which is commonly abbreviated/referred to as DOMS.
DOMS is different for everyone; some people experience it minutes after a workout, most commonly it’s experienced 24-48 hours after resistance exercise.
It’s important to distinguish DOMS from pain due to injury. DOMS is perceived as a dull, aching pain, mostly in the muscle belly, and can also feel stiff. Injury pain, on the other hand tends to be sharper in character, and can be felt in the muscles as well as the tendons.
Now, this may seem like very simple information that most of us are familiar with, and I can tell that most of my patients are aware through their use of phrases like “a workout pain” or “a good pain”.
There are, however, some myths surrounding DOMS that are important to dispel:
- It’s because of the lactic acid – sounds like a fantastic sciency explanation, however the cause is actually unclear and/or more recently attributed to microscopic tears in the muscle. The phrase “tears in the muscle” may sound ominous, however, they’re required in order to stimulate the muscle to repair itself into a stronger and bigger version. This repair is one of the three main mechanisms of muscle strengthening and growth.
- The more soreness, the more growth or more benefit from the workout. I hear this often and in different ways. The earliest memory is when I heard this from a martial arts instructor “you haven’t had a proper workout if you’re not aching”. Unfortunately this isn’t true, and there is simply no direct correlation between the level of muscle soreness and the amount of benefit from a workout. Now, the “fashion” of trainers pushing their clients too far is more or less over and done with; however one thing that still persists with some people is that they feel unsatisfied with their workout if they’re not in pain. Usually the reason that they’re no longer in pain is that their muscles and tendons have adapted to the workout, or simply because there’s no clear link between amount pain and workout benefit, as stated above.
Now, what’s more interesting is how to actually prevent or deal with DOMS.
When it comes to prevention – the most important thing is to know your limits. The whole “no pain, no gain” idea is very old hat and is only applicable to a small extent. Other prevention advice depends on the sport or activity being undertaken, but includes advice like using compression clothing and/or proper warm-ups and cool-downs.
The treatment options are mostly to heat up the muscles; this can be in a sauna or a bath (Epsom salts can be added to help). Essentially, we’re increasing the amount of blood flow in order to flush out the natural chemicals that are contributing to the pain. These chemicals include lactic acid as well as the chemicals related to healing and repair.
