Thursday I went back to the gym for the first time in absolutely ages. I worked with a trainer on my lower body, and man was it tough. (And man did he ever seem like a nice guy until we started the real work!) He warned me it was going to hurt in the morning, told me to stretch before I went to bed. So I did. Which might be why I eventually, finally managed to get out of the bed in the morning, since if it had been any worse I don’t think I’d have made it!
It’s two days later and my legs are still in agony. I can’t even sit down like a human being; I sort of position myself over the chair and fall. It hurts less. Yesterday, by order of Murphy’s Law, was the day I had to go to Lowe’s, haul some lumber around, kneel on the ground and build some raised beds for my vegetable garden, and have my first ballroom dance lesson. Do you have any idea how much that sucked? Because I do.
I reek of Tiger Balm. I’ve taken some Advil, tried stretching, tried Ben Gay patches (no real success there), found out you can’t really get those one-time-use heated patch things for your whole upper leg, etc. What else can I do? What do you guys do? I’m to the point where I’ll try any weird out-there bodybuilding voodoo - I’m at work today. I’m a librarian, which isn’t exactly like being a construction worker, but every so often you do have to get out of your chair! (Thankfully there are no stairs. Yesterday the dog wouldn’t come in at night and I had to go down the deck stairs to get him in. I may never forgive him.)
Also, you know, the tragedy is I have to go back there! Next time we’re torturing my arms (and again it’s the day before our dance lessons). Is there anything I can do before I hit the gym? Any vitamin I’m missing? (I’ve been taking a multivitamin, BTW.) Anything I should lay in a store of?
I know it’ll get better as I do more of it, but good lord does this ever suck. But you know the worst part? My trainer said he was “going easy on me” this week.
When I was working out pretty hard in my 20s I found that immediately following the workout with the spa (soaking in very hot water) made my recovery quicker and less painful. Might be something you could try.
About 15 years ago I went water skiing which I had not done in ages. The following morning I was more stiff than I had ever been (before or since) in my life. I had to sort of roll/flop out of bed. My stiffness literally started just below my ear and went all the way down to my ankles. I walked like I was Frankenstein in a weird sort of swinging gait. As it happened I was working for a women’s health clinic at the time so I wandered over and asked the nurses if they had anything that could help. The nurse handed me some pills. I asked her what this was for and she said they gave it to women for cramps. I said something about not having a girl problem and I thought the nurse would smack me when she tersely pointed out that "cramps’ was precisely what I had and what did I think cramps were anyway (hey…I was young and dumb). I took the pills and they did wonders…I still hurt but they definitely helped a good deal.
The pills were Naproxen Sodium which over-the-counter is sold as Aleve. At the time this drug was not OTC so what I got was a disticntly larger dose than what it says today on the OTC version. Later the nurse asked me how I was feeling and I said that the pills had done their job quite well…indeed perhaps too well as they loosened me up so much I was spending a lot of time in the bathroom. The nurse laughed and said she forgot to tell me that was a possible side effect.
Anyway, I have since been a big believer in Aleve for muscle pain. The OTC dosage direction are ~200-400mg for one dose (1-2 pills). IIRC the nurse hit me with 600mg. If it is really bad you might consider upping the dosage but DO NOT do that without an ok from your doctor. I am NOT a doctor so FOLLOW THE LABEL INSTRUCTIONS unless a real doctor tells you otherwise (sorry for all the caps but I do not want someone hurting themself based on this…just make a quick call to the doctor to be sure else follow the directions).
Beyond that a hot bath felt really good as did a massage from my girlfriend. Honestly the massage I do not think really helped but it felt good at least temporarily.
For now, just rest and time will make it better. Then, go back to the gym and conistently work out , and within a few weeks, you’ll notice that you’re not getting as sore anymore. Within a few months, you won’t feel any different the day after a workout than any other day.
I drink lots of water and stretch out the day after. An adequate warmup prior will also help. I avoid taking medicine and just deal with the soreness. Like others have said, it will decrease eventually.
Once the damage is done, I think you just have to tough it out. But to take the agony out of the impending upper body workout, I suggest doing a light workout in the days just before the big one. Your muscles will be a little broken in, and hopefully the pain won’t be as intense. I say this as an observer of my husband’s re-start of his workout. He was off a couple months with injuries, and he’s been easing back into it over the past six weeks or so. He’s got The Big One coming up in a couple weeks, and didn’t want to cripple himself. Seems to be working for him.
One thing that works for me sometimes for soreness is the exercise equivalent of “hair of the dog”. Do the exercise that made you get sore in the first place, just hard enough and just long enough to get blood flowing to the effected muscles. That will wash away some of the lactic acid.
Stretch deeply, before and after. See the end of this guide for specific instructions (skip past all the stuff about steroids). I’ve been stretching this way for about nine months now, and it’s frigging brilliant.
Whatever it is, it sure feels like there’s something in there that can be washed away with blood flow. Or maybe blood flow just helps the cells to heal. You can almost feel it, in a weird tingly way that’s kind of hard to describe. Even if it’s all placebo effect, it sure brings relief–never complete, but enough to make a difference.
You should never be pushed that hard when you are first starting out. It’s a surefire way to make you avoid the gym, and it’s not doing you any good fitness-wise.
I agree. You should be tight and a little sore, but not unable to move and in agony. The trainer should know better.
I find that doing cardio loosens up the DOMS, it really kills for the first few minutes, but really makes a difference.
Working out can make the muscles tight and sore, but there is a big difference between that “OOOOH I had a killer workout” and “OMIGOD I can’t wipe my own butt.”
Your trainer should be experienced enough to push you but not kill you. Is the guy new? Or just really old school?
Within an hour after your workout, have a cup of warm jello.
I am not kidding. Hot water + a tablespoon or two of Jello, flavor of your choice.
I don’t know why this works but it has always worked for me and has worked for people I’ve recommended it to. My brother the pharmacist thinks it has something to do with removing lactic acid. (Or neutralizing it–whatever.)
Anyway–can’t hurt, right?
I have used this after doing new things (snowshoeing), things I haven’t done in a while (ballet), and it doesn’t remove ALL soreness. But I don’t mind a little bit of soreness.
I don’t have any solutions for you, but I can tell you this - it’s gonna be worse after you do the upper body. You won’t be able to extend your arms fully for about three days.
That sort of pain sucks, but usually you only get it once. The thought of going through that again is what keeps me going to the gym.
Sometimes, when I have nothing better to do I’ll work out twice as long as I normally do just to see if I can make myself sore.
No matter how hard I try, no dice.
In case your wondering why I would purposely do this to myself; well I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase: “No pain, no gain.” I sometimes get paranoid that I’m no progressing with my fittness.
