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Muscle Soreness and Muscle Growth
Posted by Magnus
Does muscle soreness equal muscle growth? Is muscle soreness a good evidence of an effective workout ? Do I need to be sore after every workout? I'm not sore after my workout, does that mean the intensity wasn't high enough ? Can I workout when I am sore? These are some of the questions asked everyday by lifters especially the newbies. While some of these questions may be valid, it is hard to argue that muscle soreness is not necessary for muscle growth. Nevertheless, the effectiveness of your workout should not be based on how sore your muscles are.
If you had lifted weight, done some body-weight exercises, or intense activities your body isn't used to, you might have felt pain or discomfort in the muscles few days after these activities. This pain is known as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). I could remember my first experience at the gym - Lifting the weight was pretty fun, you know, swinging the weight up and down, performing pullovers, triceps extension and bench press. It became terrible the next day when I tried to take my bath and I couldn't scrub my back . I know many of you can relate to this. Let's take a look at what Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness is and the causes.
Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness also known as DOMS is the discomfort or pain you feel in the muscles after a hard or strange workout. This pain usually occur one or two days after an intense workout and dies out after 5-7 days. Actually, the major cause of muscle soreness has not been fully known but experts believe it is as a result of microscopic tears in the muscle fibres caused by eccentric or negative portion of the lift - for example when you lower the weight during the bench press or biceps curls. One study concluded that "eccentric activities induce micro-injury at a greater frequency and severity than other types of muscle actions. The intensity and duration of exercise are also important factors in DOMS onset". The accumulation of lactic acid in the muscles was once thought to be the cause of muscle soreness since it causes burning sensation in the muscle. However, several researches have shown that lactic acid is eliminated from the muscles few hour after workout, thus it can be the cause of the discomfort or pain felt one or two days after workout.
DOES MUSCLE SORENESS EQUAL MUSCLE GROWTH?
Many lifters believe muscle soreness is the wages for the hardwork in the gym, they always have this thought " Yeah! I'm sore, that means my muscles are growing bigger, No pain No gain. And when they start experiencing no soreness or even mild soreness, they think the workout is futile, its high time they changed their routine. But is it always No pain No gain or No brain no gain? According to a research, "DOMS is likely a symptom of eccentric - exercise - induce muscle damage, it does not necessarily reflect muscle damage". Some experts also support that muscle soreness may be a result of damaged connective tissues around the muscles and not the even the muscle tissues.
Also, some physical activities can make you extremely sore without you experiencing some significant amount of muscle growth. For instance, if I told you to run a marathon ,sure you will experience muscle soreness the following day, but will it make you grow muscle compare to when you do squats or lunges? No. Apart from that, some exercises can create more soreness than others. For instance, I found that dumbbell chest flyes usually creates more soreness to my chest than bench press. Also, my triceps are usually more sore after performing dumbbell triceps extension than close grip bench press.
Moreover, your training experience can also affect muscle soreness. Bodybuilders who train more often are likely to experience mild or no soreness, and bodybuilders who train seldomly usually experience more soreness. The more your body gets used to some exercises, the less you feel muscle soreness when you train. This is known as Repeated Bout Effect. However the mechanism of this hasn't been fully known but a study states that " following recovery from an initial bout a repeated bout of the same exercise results in minimal signs and symptoms of muscle damage ". Most of the time, muscle soreness occur when you perform exercises your body isn't accustomed to, when you workout after a long time, when you incorporate some exercises into your workout or when you increase the intensity of your workout.
Furthermore, sleep deprivation can also cause muscle soreness by hampering muscle recovery . Training hard in the gym without adequate sleep will hinder muscle recovery or muscle growth. When you are sleeping, the body produces testosterone and Growth Hormone which are necessary for muscle growth. One study concluded that " consequently , we hypothesized that sleep debt decreases the activity of protein synthesis pathways and increases the activity of degradation pathways, favoring the loss of muscle mass and thus hindering muscle recovery after damage induced by exercise, injuries and certain conditions associated with muscle atrophy ". Lack of sleep can also increase cortisol and reduce the production of testosterone.
However, some people do experience more soreness than others no matter what they do. Likewise, some people do recover faster than others. Genetics may also affect muscle soreness. According to a research, there is evidence that " certain gene variations, or polymorphism have been associated with exercise -induced muscle damage (i. e. Individuals with certain genotypes experience greater muscle damage, and require longer recovery, following strenuous exercise)". Also, some muscle groups usually get DOMS more often than others, especially the chest, back and legs while some muscle groups like delts, forearms, and calves are rarely sore. I usually train my calves 2-3 times everyweek and they rarely get DOMS.
In addition, your muscles will grow as long as you continue to add more weights to the bar. So instead craving for muscle soreness, focus on increasing the weight, doing more reps or sets. Just make sure you get better everyweek.
REFERENCES
1. The Repeated Bout Effect: Does Evidence for a Crossover Effect Exist? Declan A.J. Connolly , * Brian V.Reed , * and Malachy P. McHugh * https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3967433/
2. Genetic variation and exercise-induced muscle damage: implications for athletic performance, injury and ageing . Philipp Baumert, Mark J. Lake, Claire E. Stewart , Barry Drust , and Robert M. Erskine https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4983298/
3. Sleep and muscle recovery: endocrinological and molecular basis for a new and promising hypothesis. Dattilo M, et al. Med Hypotheses. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/21550729/
4. Delayed onset muscle soreness : treatment strategies and performance factors. Review article Cheung K, et al. Sports Med. 2003. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/12617692/
5. Effects of Massage on Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness, Swelling, and Recovery of Muscle Function. Zainal Zainuddin , Mike Newton, Paul Sacco, and Kazunori Nosaka https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4983298/
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