One question that many people come across as they go about their muscle building or fat loss workouts is whether or not muscular soreness can be used to judge how effective that particular workout was.
Most individuals tend to believe that when you wake up the next morning hardly able to move, this is a sure sign that you must have had a terrific workout the day before.
But is this really the case?
Here’s what you need to consider.
What Causes Muscular Soreness
One of the most common causes of muscular soreness is performing a new type of exercise or movement. Think about the last time you added a new exercise to your workout program – whether it was a variation of a standard bench press, a new type of tricep movement, or you simply altered your foot position while doing squats.
How did you feel the next day?
Sore?
More than likely. This soreness is caused because the body is not used that particular muscular pattern, as is reacting to this new movement. Once the body gets more used to that particular exercise, soreness will become much less.
This is also why when you’re on a program for weeks or months at a time, the degree of soreness you’re experiencing is often relatively low.
The Case Of Higher Reps and Muscular Soreness
The next reason why it’s common to experience muscular soreness is due to a higher generation of lactic acid, that hasn’t cleared the body quickly.
This lactic acid can build up in the tissues, and cause post-workout muscle soreness.
And, what’s the type of exercise that tends to produce the greatest amount of lactic acid? High rep weight training with little rest in between (well, apart from anaerobic sprints, of course).
So, if this is the nature of your workout program, then that could be yet another reason why you are more sore after a completed sessions.
Dietary Factors
Finally, the diet you’re consuming can also impact post-workout muscle soreness. Some individuals tend to find that they feel more sore when they are consuming a lower carb diet, than when they are consuming higher carbs.
Further, if you aren’t getting in very good post-workout nutrition, this can also be problematic in terms of preventing post-workout muscular soreness.
So, in summary, don’t use post-workout soreness as a hard and fast guide to a great workout. You can most definitely be getting in a very good workout without feeling sore the next day. Whether soreness is present or not, what determines a good workout from bad is first, you showing up (obviously), and secondly, that you are pushing yourself and challening your muscles in a way that is appropriate for the particular workout program you’re doing.
Keep this in mind next time you hobble out of bed, barely able to walk.
Related posts:
