Sore Muscles After A Workout: A Must For Muscle Growth?

Have you ever wondered whether or not muscle soreness is a prerequisite for the best muscle/strength gains after a gym workout? Some people swear by always seeking to make their muscles ache in order to achieve the best results, whilst others claim to very rarely feel muscle soreness in the days which follow their workouts, and still get great results. With two conflicting opinions on the matter, where does that leave you? No pain, no gain?

What is post-workout muscle soreness?

The phenomena of muscle soreness in the days which follow a workout is known as DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness). It can last several days depending upon the severity. Once thought to be caused by lactic acid, more recent research tends to point to microscopic tears in the muscles fibers causing inflammation and nerve pain within the muscles as being the true cause of DOMS.

It’s more probable microscopic tears in the muscles fibers is the true cause of DOMS and not lactic acid build up, as lactic acid can generally be felt immediately during a workout as a creeping ‘burning’ sensation – yet doesn’t always result in DOMS in the days that follow, nor is DOMS only felt after experiencing a lactic acid burn during a workout.

Why would people think muscle soreness leads to growth?

There’s no two ways about it that a person must, in some way or other, seek to eclipse their previous performance levels in order to elicit a positive adaptation in their muscles. This has led many to believe that the only true way to determine whether or not they’ve gone sufficiently beyond previous levels is to do enough to feel DOMS in their muscles. Usually, a person won’t be able to keep increasing the weight significantly enough to feel soreness, so the only approach left is to increase the volume of the workload – more total reps.

The problem is this approach can quickly lead to overtraining as the body simply cannot cope with the rapidly increasing volume.

What really causes post-workout muscle soreness?

Have you ever noticed how when you first start a new exercise, or, begin training once again after a lay-off, that the muscles feel sore, even without significant volume? That’s because you’ve hit the central nervous system (and by extension, the muscles) with a stress it was ill-prepared for. Yet, gradually, usually within 2-3 sessions – even if you continue adding weight – that soreness gradually wanes?  That’s because the central nervous system has adapted to the stimuli; it’s no longer alien.

Soon after you will notice it becoming rapidly more difficult to add weight, and at this point you’ve gotten the best out of this exercise. Seeking to increase the volume (within reason) may prolong its usefulness for a few more weeks, but it’s certainly not going to be viable much beyond that without overtraining. A change of exercise would be best.

Another reason people feel muscle soreness…

People who train with slower eccentric (negative) reps can expect to feel more soreness than those who lower the weight more quickly. In fact, many attribute the majority of DOMS to the eccentric portion of the repetition, not the concentric. Sometimes, even if an exercise has been used for several weeks, by making more of the negative repetition by lowering more slowly, you will begin to feel muscle soreness once more – but remember, nothing lasts beyond a few weeks so don’t consider chasing ever-slower negative repetitions for too long, it’s not a viable or effective strategy beyond maybe a couple of weeks.

Why some people always feel sore and others don’t (and who gets the best results?)…

When you hear people saying they always feel sore after a good workout and that’s how they get their results, it doesn’t necessarily mean you should follow suit. You have no idea of their genetic capabilities, their length of time training, how they train or what their diet and lifestyle is like – or if they’re utilizing steroids or not.

You must remember that soreness means significant physical stress, and some people’s bodies aren’t capable of coping with a lot of persistent significant physical stress without reacting badly and shutting down. Therefore, some people may thrive by pushing themselves harder, and others may do far better for themselves by not pushing themselves so hard so often. Nobody can tell you what will work for you, that’s something you need to figure out for yourself by getting in the trenches and gaining personal experience.

So, should I aim for muscle soreness or not?

As demonstrated, chasing muscle soreness can lead to overtraining quickly if you go about it the wrong way. It’s not the soreness which causes muscles to gain size/strength; it is merely a potential symptom of exposing the body to a physical stress it found difficult to cope with. This may mean gains for you won’t be far behind, or it may mean you’ve pushed too hard and the results will be negative – time will tell.

Also, remember you are more likely to experience muscle soreness upon changing exercises for the first session or two than by trying to increase the volume too much too soon – and changing exercises frequently is one of the cornerstones of making consistent progress, so for many who change regularly, soreness will likely be a much more constant companion than someone who changes infrequently.

To sum it up: Soreness shouldn’t necessarily be sought, but in the right circumstances it can be a positive indicator for you. How your body responds after experiencing soreness (or not) is the only thing that matters.