Hauling moving boxes or doing deep lunges in a Pilates class can leave muscles aching for days.
Why do muscles get sore and what can you do about it?
Orthopaedic surgeon Dr Martin Rinio explains why muscle soreness occurs and what makes it go away.
Whether it is the thighs, arms or stomach, muscle soreness is a sign that the muscles have been pushed a little too hard, he says.
“The cause is tiny fibre injuries, and not, as was previously assumed, a build-up of acid in the muscle,” says the surgeon at a joint clinic in Germany.
“The pain the next day is, so to speak, a side effect of the repair or healing process.”
When the thighs are badly affected, getting up from the toilet can be painful.
And when the abdominal muscles are sore, neither coughing nor laughing is any fun.
So what can be done?
To allow the body to carry out its repair programme as effectively as possible, the muscles should be given rest.
That means:
- Intensive training is off-limits – Dr Rinio advises waiting until at least two pain-free days have passed before resuming it.
- Relaxed walks, and light loosening and stretching exercises, on the other hand, can be beneficial.
- Some people find that warmth helps with aching muscles – a sauna visit or a warm bath, for example.
Others find cold more soothing against the pain.
However, anyone tempted to knead those aching muscles should resist the urge.
Massages can actually be counterproductive, as they exert a mechanical stimulus on the muscles that can worsen the fibre injuries, Dr Rinio warns.
Intensive work on the muscles can even lead to tiny tears.
Dr Rinio’s joint clinic says it is also possible that muscles tense up as a defensive reaction to unfamiliar massage techniques, causing soreness to develop.
Although it’d be nice if muscle soreness would last just one day, it can persist for up to a week.
Anyone who still feels a pulling sensation in the muscles three weeks after training should see a doctor to rule out serious injuries, says Dr Rinio.
What then can help prevent muscle soreness?
One worthwhile step is to be more conscientious about warming up before exercising.
This improves blood flow to the muscles and means they start training less stiff, which reduces the risk of muscle injuries.
It is also important not to overdo it during training.
Consistency pays off too – in other words, avoid being a weekend warrior.
“If I use and train my muscles regularly, the likelihood of muscle soreness decreases considerably,” says Dr Rinio. – dpa
