Sore Muscles at the Gym | How long for Muscles to Recover

How to Recover from Sore Muscles at the Gym & How long for Muscles to Recover

DOMS or Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness and lengthy muscle recovery time is a natural part of the fitness process, and anyone who's been working out for a while knows that it's just a price you have to pay for your body to get stronger.

Delayed onset muscle soreness is your body's way of telling you that it's growing and adapting in different ways, and the muscle recovery and sore muscles usually only last a day or two after your workout. So don't worry if you're feeling a little soreness - it's totally normal!

What causes DOMS?

At the gym, muscles can become very sore, and it's important to know how long muscle recovery will take to recover. Depending on the intensity of your workout, muscles can take anywhere from a few days to a week to recover. But what causes Muscles Soreness?

When you workout you damage small muscle fibres usually which creates small tear's within and between the muscle fibres, when these regrow they grow back stronger and larger, increasing both muscles strength and muscle mass.

Hence it is a natural result of growing stronger and fitter, soreness is always going to be involved unfortunately.  

As you can see when you work out, it's normal to feel a bit sore afterwards. But if your muscles are screaming for mercy, there are things you can do to help with muscle recovery.

Somethings you can't change

The first thing to note is some symptoms of DOMS are always going to be there and its a natural part of muscle recovery which is caused by damage to muscle fibers often only going away after complete rest post workout.  

For many people who love to go to the gym, they have a cycle they go through with their workout routine. They feel a slight but satisfying ache in their muscles and they know it's time for their next workout. This is generally agreed upon as being safe to train and that there shouldn't be any negative side-effects. So, if you find yourself in this situation, don't be alarmed, you're probably just on track with your fitness goals!

With this in mind healthy amounts of exercise are a great way to achieve muscle growth without a lengthy workout recovery. But if your undertaking intense exercise or workout frequency muscle damage will result without the time for active recovery.

Do remember however that slight muscle pain is a sign of muscle growth and you won't be able to mitigate all levels of muscle soreness doms. So learn to live with the odd ache and pain, its a sign of your progress.

The pain shouldn't be too much

Aches and pains are normal for gym users during muscle recovery but If your muscles are in agony, it's likely a sign that you've done some damage and need to recover before working out again. 

You can do a few things to improve the effects of DOMS.

How to reduce the changes of getting DOMS

There are several things you can do to reduce your chances of getting DOMS.

• Don't workout beyond your means, there is a point when your gains will diminish and you can even enter the phase of muscle wastage. Try and stick to a plan that optimises the benefits and give you time to recover
• Get plenty of rest and allow active recovery, muscles repair better during your sleep in fact up to a 30% increase in repair efficiency, which is due to the fact that the body releases most of its human growth hormone (hGH) when you asleep.
• Take a Protein supplement, supplements work the very best for people who workout regularly and help to supplement your muscles with crucial amino acids like BCAA's
• Take a Pre or Post workout supplement, these are basically high carbohydrate drinks, that flood your body with carb and sugars to help you recover and workout, A good tip for a cheap workout supplement is Orange Juice. 
• Try and avoid over tough workout, try and spread the exercise out over a larger muscle group, include rest days to help muscles recover,    
• Undertake a healthy diet, include active recovery days, even include cold water immersion theory in the extreme cases.

How to recover from the pain of DOMS

There are several things you can do to recover from the pain of DOMS.

• Get plenty of rest, muscles repair better during your sleep in fact up to a 30% increase in repair efficiency, which is due to the fact that the body releases most of its human growth hormone (hGH) when you asleep.
• Drink lots of water and stay hydrated and consume Carbs and Proteins rich supplements

• Resting is one of the most important factors when it comes to recovering from muscle aches because it allows the body’s natural healing process to take place. So, make sure you rest after a workout session for at least 10 minutes or more if needed.

• Try and increase your blood flow, maintain your energy stores, use an ice pack or compression tights and drink coconut water which can help muscles heal and reduce muscle soreness.

How long to Recover from DOMS

Most of the stronger symptoms of DOMS will fade after 2 days with, with most people being back to normal between 3 and 5 days.

Depending on how you feel if only slight aches, you may be able to continue training at the gym, but be sure you give yourself rest time when needed, if you can't get to the gym but want some lighter workouts, there are many home gym items such as the leg master deluxe system or the spinning burn rotator machine which can provide varying levels of working out to get you back up to shape quicker.

  

Conclusion

Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, is a natural and common occurrence for anyone regularly working out to see results and become stronger. For some, it may feel like a necessary evil while others may see it as a sign that they're finally pushing their bodies to the limit - but regardless, it's just a part of the process that lets you know you're making real progress.

Severe DOMS is a sign that you may have overdone it and your muscles are now having difficulty recovering and repairing themselves. If you're experiencing severe DOMS, it's best to take a step back and ease up on your workout routine until your muscles have had a chance to recover.

Staying hydrated, taking supplements and giving yourself time to rest are the best ways to treat and prevent DOMS

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