Most people don't like pain or things that cause it. If it's been a while since you have exercised and you're afraid of the pain during and the soreness that follows you are certainly not alone. One of the biggest concerns expressed to me during the initial phone call or meeting with a new client is the fear of not being able to push through an exercise session due to the pain or not being able to function the next day due to the soreness. Being afraid of exercise for these reasons is completely normal - people naturally fear pain and soreness and as a result avoid things that cause it. I would like stress to you that exercise does not have to be painful and you don't have to be sore the following day (or 2, or 3) to benefit from an exercise program. In this article I would like to help you interpret the things you might feel during exercise and re-assure you that 'no pain - no gain' is not necessarily true.
The longer you go without exercise, the more out of touch you become with your body and what it feels like to exert yourself. There are a whole lot of things going on physiologically when you exercise and if you're not familiar with these responses they will feel very uncomfortable. An elevated heart rate, increased breathing rate and depth, build up of metabolic waste products in the body including lactic acid, increased blood flow to the working muscles and away from other areas, fatigue, sweating and increased body temperature are all normal physiological responses to exercise. When you start an exercise program for the first time or after a long break it needs to be expected that you will experience these things and it won't feel comfortable. As uncomfortable as it may be initially it's important that you don't misinterpret these normal physiological responses as pain, they are simply the result of the body adapting to an increased workload - this increased workload is exercise. If you don't feel these physiological responses then simply put - you're not exercising. As you continue with your exercise program your body will become better at adapting and these normal changes will feel more and more bearable - just keep reminding yourself during the early stages of your exercise program that these changes are (1) normal, (2) not painful, (3) just uncomfortable and they will (4) improve with time and training!
'Dull' aches or feelings of 'heaviness' and fatigue that build gradually over the course of an exercise session are as a general rule not cause for concern. Pains that are 'sharp' or 'sudden' may be your body telling you to stop what you're doing. Listen to your body and try to interpret what it's telling you. Are you working hard and experiencing muscle fatigue - which is safe to work through, or are you moving your body in a way that is causing injury - which is reason to stop?
Exercise doesn't have to be painful to achieve results but it does have to elicit the physiological responses discussed earlier. It is true (up to a point) that greater the physiological response, greater the fitness results that follow however even the slightest response to exercise is better then none at all. No pain no gain is not a true statement, there is benefit to just working as hard as you can comfortably. As you become more familiar with the responses associated with exercise your physical and mental capacity to work through them will improve and so you will your results. You don't have to enjoy pain to enjoy exercise, just be prepared to feel a bit uncomfortable to begin with.
Soreness, stiffness and/or tenderness that sets in after exercise is called Delayed Onset Muscles Soreness (DOMS). DOMS can set in anywhere between 6-48 hours after training and is most commonly experienced at the start of a new exercise program, after the introduction of new excises and after increases or changes in training volume, intensity and frequency. DOMS results from muscle fibre damage caused by exercise and the healing process that follows. Small amounts of damage to muscle fibres during exercise is normal and it's this damage and repair process that results in adaptation. It is a common misconception that the degree of muscle soreness is relative to the amount of muscle damage - the degree of DOMS is not a good measure of training effectiveness and you don't have to experience DOMS to benefit from exercise. DOMS occurs less and less as your exercise program progresses and it's never as bad as after your first exercise session. Don't let the DOMS that sets in after your first training session scare you off - this is the worst it will ever be. If you stop after this session you will have to go through the discomfort all over again.
Here are some tips to minimise pain and soreness during and after exercise:
The longer you go without exercise, the more out of touch you become with your body and what it feels like to exert yourself. There are a whole lot of things going on physiologically when you exercise and if you're not familiar with these responses they will feel very uncomfortable. An elevated heart rate, increased breathing rate and depth, build up of metabolic waste products in the body including lactic acid, increased blood flow to the working muscles and away from other areas, fatigue, sweating and increased body temperature are all normal physiological responses to exercise. When you start an exercise program for the first time or after a long break it needs to be expected that you will experience these things and it won't feel comfortable. As uncomfortable as it may be initially it's important that you don't misinterpret these normal physiological responses as pain, they are simply the result of the body adapting to an increased workload - this increased workload is exercise. If you don't feel these physiological responses then simply put - you're not exercising. As you continue with your exercise program your body will become better at adapting and these normal changes will feel more and more bearable - just keep reminding yourself during the early stages of your exercise program that these changes are (1) normal, (2) not painful, (3) just uncomfortable and they will (4) improve with time and training!
'Dull' aches or feelings of 'heaviness' and fatigue that build gradually over the course of an exercise session are as a general rule not cause for concern. Pains that are 'sharp' or 'sudden' may be your body telling you to stop what you're doing. Listen to your body and try to interpret what it's telling you. Are you working hard and experiencing muscle fatigue - which is safe to work through, or are you moving your body in a way that is causing injury - which is reason to stop?
Exercise doesn't have to be painful to achieve results but it does have to elicit the physiological responses discussed earlier. It is true (up to a point) that greater the physiological response, greater the fitness results that follow however even the slightest response to exercise is better then none at all. No pain no gain is not a true statement, there is benefit to just working as hard as you can comfortably. As you become more familiar with the responses associated with exercise your physical and mental capacity to work through them will improve and so you will your results. You don't have to enjoy pain to enjoy exercise, just be prepared to feel a bit uncomfortable to begin with.
Soreness, stiffness and/or tenderness that sets in after exercise is called Delayed Onset Muscles Soreness (DOMS). DOMS can set in anywhere between 6-48 hours after training and is most commonly experienced at the start of a new exercise program, after the introduction of new excises and after increases or changes in training volume, intensity and frequency. DOMS results from muscle fibre damage caused by exercise and the healing process that follows. Small amounts of damage to muscle fibres during exercise is normal and it's this damage and repair process that results in adaptation. It is a common misconception that the degree of muscle soreness is relative to the amount of muscle damage - the degree of DOMS is not a good measure of training effectiveness and you don't have to experience DOMS to benefit from exercise. DOMS occurs less and less as your exercise program progresses and it's never as bad as after your first exercise session. Don't let the DOMS that sets in after your first training session scare you off - this is the worst it will ever be. If you stop after this session you will have to go through the discomfort all over again.
Here are some tips to minimise pain and soreness during and after exercise:
- Introduce new exercises into your training program gradually. Start with a few and add a new one or two each session until you have a good repertoire to choose from.
- Warm up appropriately before an exercise session for a minimum of 5-10 minutes. Jogging, cycling and skipping are great warm up options.
- Progress your training volume (sets and reps), intensity (resistance/weight and rest periods) and frequency (sessions per week) slowly and as you feel comfortable. A personal trainer can prescribe an exercise program applying correct progression principals.
- Learn correct exercise technique from a qualified person and regularly have them watch your technique to give you feedback to ensure you are performing the movements correctly.
- Include recovery components in your training program such as stretching (static, dynamic) and myofacial release (self massage using foam rollers, trigger pointing using spiky balls) after exercise and on the days that follow.
- Allow adequate rest between exercise sessions. As a general rule don't train the same muscles on consecutive days and don't train muscles if they are still sore from a previous exercise session.
- Listen to your body - if you feel a sharp pain that hurts during exercise don't push through it, work around it. It is important that you learn the difference between a normal 'working' fatigue and a sharp pain.
- Ensure you are achieving adequate protein intake in your diet to aid muscle recovery. 1g of protein per kg of body weight is adequate for general exercise participation. There is more information available on this topic in the article: FAQ: what should I eat after training?
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