Do you want to get off to a flying start in terms of sports? You'd like to lace up your sports shoes every day. If only it weren't for the muscle pain. And now? Can you train with sore muscles or do you have to take a break?
Yesterday you were still fully motivated. The training really challenged you, you felt wonderful. And today. You are tormented by pain in your muscles.
But do without a workout? No thanks!
Or is it? Is it unhealthy to train with sore muscles or is it the pain that makes training so efficient? Do I have to take a forced break now?
There are many myths about training with sparrows. We took a close look and asked.
Table of contents
- Whether you can train with sore muscles
- When you should definitely not exercise with muscle pain
- What you can do if you want to exercise despite sore muscles
- How muscle soreness and muscle growth are related
- No-Gos - What you should never do when your muscles are sore
- How you can prevent muscle pain by stretching
Sore muscles can be pretty nasty. Nevertheless, many people train according to the motto: only those who have sore muscles have really trained efficiently.
Sometimes the muscle pain appears shortly after the workout, sometimes not until the next few days. It pulls. It hurts. With sore muscles, even simple things like getting dressed or climbing stairs become a pain.
Mmmhh delicious! These are very good foods for sore muscles!
But what about workouts now? Yes or no?
Whether you can train with sore muscles
The clear answer to this is: YES! :)
If you want to train the muscle groups that already hurt a lot, the answer is clearly no.
But if you only feel pain in your legs after an intense workout, it does not mean a forced break. You can now train the arms or the abdomen, for example.
The legs need a break now.
Well done ladies: Muscle building as a woman - this is how it's done!
There is a rumor that it helps to train into the muscle soreness, but every trainer advises against this.
This is because you will not make any progress in your training, but only regress. The risk of injury is also increased when you train with muscle pain.
If you can't perform certain movements correctly because of pain, then you'd better find something else.
In summary: Training with a sore muscle is fundamentally possible, but only if it is moderate and other muscle groups are addressed.
Otherwise, it's better not to exercise with sore muscles and give your body some rest.
How to mix a DIY chili salve for muscle tension in 5 minutes!
By the way, a whole range of nutrients can support you during regeneration. L-glutamine and BCAAs are the best example. They help your body to get fit again faster.
For faster recovery after a workout, Foodspring has developed Recovery Amino Drinks. You simply mix the powder with water and drink it after the workout.
The drink contains everything the muscles need now. In the Recovery Aminos from Foodspring contains only natural ingredients.
If you are interested in Foodspring products, I can give you a Foodspring discount code give. With the code WGW15FS you get 15% on your order!
And the shakes are also delicious in taste. You can choose from 3 different flavors. My favorite is wild berry :)
When you should definitely not exercise with muscle pain
Actually, this question is quite simple to answer. If your body sends you a signal that it is not yet ready for training, then you should definitely listen to it.
Whether you're fully motivated and feel like an intense workout, listen to what your body is telling you.
Unfortunately, sore muscles and training do not always go together. Pain in the muscles always arises from unaccustomed or excessive strain.
Always remember that muscle pain is caused by small tears in the muscles.
Although these are tiny, but still cracks.
If too strong a stimulus is applied to these tears, then a strain can occur as a further consequence.
If you would then continue to train beyond that, which would really not be wise, then there is even a risk of muscle tears or abrasions.
At the latest then really everyone knows that training with muscle pain was not very wise.
What you can do if you want to exercise despite sore muscles
There are a number of things you can do to get rid of sore muscles soon. Especially good should be everything that ensures that the aching muscles are better supplied with blood. This means that the muscles are supplied with important nutrients and repaired more quickly.
Here you'll learn that sore muscles and training don't have to be mutually exclusive.
1. treat sore muscles with swimming
Exercising with sore muscles is definitely possible. Swimming is an ideal sport for this. Only, again, this must not end in an excessive workout.
You should swim in a way that is relaxing for you, at a level that promotes recovery.
So swim out rather loosely.
Besides, swimming is the optimal sport for endurance training, which stresses the whole body. Therefore, it is possible to train effectively even at low intensity.
With no stopping, stretching or pushing movements to cause further muscle tears, the water does the entire body good.
Did you know that you can build muscle so easily with swimming?
2. running against sore muscles
Active regeneration is also possible with running. However, you should only train with muscle pain if your sore muscles are not in your legs.
This is where the greatest load lies, even if you also move other muscle groups.
But again, everything in moderation. In order for your sore muscles to recover quickly, you should run at a low intensity. Loose jogging is the optimal training for sore muscles.
With a light running workout, you'll boost your metabolism and promote circulation.
These are the best tips for those who are just about to start running!
3. train other muscle groups
Sore muscles and training? Yes, of course it is possible. You just have to leave out the muscles that are affected by the pain during the workout.
You can safely use "fresh" muscles. If you do split training and divide the muscles into groups, you should always find some that can be trained.
But if you're going to work out with sore muscles, you have to be careful when strength training. Make sure that the sore muscles are not overused as auxiliary muscles.
But if that is the case, you will notice it quickly anyway. Then it is better to choose other exercises. Only in this way can nothing stand in the way of muscle recovery.
4. with the Foam Roll against sparrows
You're probably familiar with foam rollers, which are also called Foam Roll or Fascia Roll. Often they are also called Blackroll (after the company Blackroll).
With proper use, you can train even with sore muscles. But you not only achieve a training effect, but also shorten the recovery time of the sore muscles.
17 effective fascia roller exercises
By massaging with a fascia roller set, you loosen tense muscles and agglutinated fascia tissue (connective tissue).
A workout with fascia rolls promotes blood circulation. This makes you ready to train again faster. At the beginning, the massage with the fascia roller can be a little uncomfortable, but afterwards the feel-good effect sets in quickly, I promise.
Food for strong connective tissue
5. treat sore muscles with heat
Another way to get nutrients and blood to your sore muscles is a heat treatment. You can place a heat pad on the affected area overnight to help it heal faster.
How muscle soreness and muscle growth are related
Many exercisers believe that muscle soreness and muscle growth are closely linked, but this is not true.
While the two often occur together, they don't have to. Even athletes who don't get muscle pain despite intense training can still get their muscles to grow.
But the complete opposite is also possible. You have a bad soreness in the arms without any growth of the muscles.
If the muscle soreness is too bad, it's not really conducive to your muscle growth. Rather, it keeps you from your next workout and thus hinders your training progress.
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So rather focus on muscle growth and not on muscle soreness. If you do get sore, you now know how you can still train with sore muscles.
No-Gos - What you should never do when your muscles are sore
Almost more important than tips on what helps with sore muscles is what you should avoid at all costs.
If the muscles are very painful, you should try not to strain them too much until everything has healed.
Strong massages are also not a good idea. On the other hand, a light massage with a fascia roller is quite helpful to successfully fight the muscle soreness.
You can also avoid stretching too intensively after a workout. Normally stretching helps the muscles to regenerate, but not the muscle soreness. Stretching only overstimulates the already injured muscle fibers.
In short:
- No intensive training
- No strong stretches
- No massages too intense
However, if the muscle soreness is rather mild, then it is even better to focus on active regeneration.
Light running or swimming are helpful to better supply the muscles with nutrients and blood.
Sparing the muscles when pain occurs seems logical, but it is only helpful if the muscle soreness is so severe that no training is possible anyway.
To assess whether you are already fit to train, you can ask yourself the following questions:
1. how severe is the pain on a scale of 1 to 10?
If the pain is at 2 or 3 it is possible to exercise with sore muscles.
2. are you still limited in your movement?
You should be able to perform all the exercises in the workout without experiencing severe pain beyond a certain range of motion.
3. is a clean execution of the exercises possible?
Pay close attention to whether you adopt a gentle posture during certain movements. If so, wait a little longer.
4. do you have enough power?
Do a normal set of exercises and see if you have the same amount of strength as usual. If not, give your muscles a little more rest.
How you can prevent muscle pain by stretching
Here, opinions differ widely. In any case, scientific studies have not yet been able to prove any positive or negative effects. Stretching therefore has no effect on the impending muscle soreness.
However, you should not do without regular stretching. Stretching makes all muscle layers more slippery, which promotes mobility.
7 incredible things daily stretches do to you!
Stretching also helps warm up your muscles and prepare them for training. The third positive effect is that through regular stretching the muscle increases in length and can thus store additional protein. This makes the muscle more flexible overall.
Our conclusion
Sore muscles should definitely not be the goal when working out. And you should also let go of thoughts that the workout was only intense enough if the muscles hurt the next day.
It is generally possible to exercise with sore muscles as long as you pay attention to your body's signals. If it wants to rest, you should also give it a break without a guilty conscience. This is the only way for the muscles to recover.
Enjoy your workout and good luck fighting the soreness!
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