"Muscle soreness occurs because muscle and the connective tissue around it get damaged during exercise," explains Dr. Hedt. "This is completely normal and nothing to worry about, though. In fact, it's needed for muscle growth, since muscle is built back stronger during this repair process."
Soreness following a workout is not an indicator of a good workout, nor is the absence of soreness an indicator of a poor workout. Feeling sore is an indicator of tiny microscopic tears in the muscle resulting in inflammation, often referred to as DOMS (delayed-onset muscle soreness).
Are you still getting results? The answer is YES. Just because you don't feel muscle soreness as intensely as when you first began doesn't mean a workout is not benefiting you. Your body is an amazing machine and it adapts very rapidly to whatever challenges you present it with.
"Delayed onset muscle soreness is a completely natural process that indicates your muscles are getting stronger — so there's no danger in just riding it out.
Not getting sore after training is not a bad thing. Soreness shouldn't be used as a measure of how effective your workout is. Instead, you should focus on other factors such as whether you can lift heavier weights, push through your workout more comfortably or add extra sets or reps to your session.
An increase in strength is also a good indicator you are working hard enough. If you're able to hold a plank longer, run faster or complete a set of squats with less of a burn, these are all signs that your strength is increasing, which means your workouts are working!
"Working out when sore is okay as long as it isn't affecting your movement to the point where it's causing you to compensate and do something in a way that's unsafe," says Dr. Hedt. "Muscle soreness can be a deterrent to exercising, but it's temporary and the more you exercise, the less you should feel it.
Sore muscles do burn calories, however it may or may not come from the fat on your body. Also, please note that sore muscles do not necessarily burn more calories any more than muscles that are not sore. Lean tissue (i.e. muscles) is the primary driver of our metabolic rate.
Soreness seems to be an indicator of the muscle breakdown that occurs during and after exercise, so feeling that pain all the time could mean you're not getting the protein your muscles need to rebuild.
For the uninitiated, muscle soreness is the necessary evil of your lifting career. No matter how long you train, or if you're into bodybuilding or heaving heavy barbells, there always seems to be a rotating door of sore, achy muscles from whatever happened in the gym the day prior.
You're Less Stiff Between Workouts
Although entirely normal, it is an uncomfortable part of the process for most. The good news is that, as you increase in strength and muscle growth, you'll feel this stiffness less frequently.
It could be that you didn't create enough of a challenge to actually cause delayed onset muscle soreness. You could increase the challenge by doing more repetitions, increasing the weight, changing the curling movement, or slowing down the eccentric (lowering) of the weight.
Sore muscles after exercise
Feeling your muscles ache or stiffen for a few days after exercise is normal and is known as delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). It can affect people of all fitness levels, particularly after trying a new activity or pushing yourself a bit harder than usual.
Good pain will feel dull or achy, and will occur after exercise. This is actually a good sign that your muscles are becoming stronger. Massage and stretch your muscles, or soak in a hot bath. Bad pain is sharp and may occur during exercise, or in the joint after exercise.
In order to protect the targeted muscle tissue from the new exercise program, the muscles may also retain fluids and become slightly inflamed. This temporary retention of fluids can result in up to 2 kilograms of increase in weight. It will wear off after a few weeks of your new regimen.
If the number on the scale is changing but your body fat percentage isn't budging, it's a sign that you are losing muscle mass. Also, when you lose muscle mass, your body doesn't shape the way you want. You will notice shrinking circumferences but fat (you can pinch and check) still remains the same.
If physical activity is already a part of your long-term emotional health strategy, try building in active rest for your growth days—activities like yoga or a brisk walk will give your muscles time to repair and rebuild without overdoing it.
Should I workout with DOMS? Although training with DOMS pain may feel like the last thing you want to do, it can actually be good for your recovery. Low-impact cardio like swimming is a fantastic way to gently ease your body back into exercise and means you don't need to put a pause on your fitness.
Should I lift weights when sore? No. You should avoid lifting heavy weights or doing any high impact activities if you're sore. Pushing through the pain isn't a good idea and can lead to a longer recovery.
Most beginners will see noticeable muscle growth within eight weeks, while more experienced lifters will see changes in three to four weeks. Most individuals gain one to two pounds of lean muscle per month with the right strength training and nutrition plan.
When you first do an exercise, you'll get stronger rapidly. Just so you know: this is not because your muscle got a lot bigger. But, rather, because of your brain's improved ability to activate that muscle during the exercise. This is what we call neurological adaptations, which lasts about 8-12 weeks.
Typically, muscle mass and strength increase steadily from birth and reach their peak at around 30 to 35 years of age. After that, muscle power and performance decline slowly and linearly at first, and then faster after age 65 for women and 70 for men.