What Is DOMS? (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness)
Building Muscle | Exercise | Fitness
Posted on May 24, 2015 by Jenny Cromack
Everyone who has ever worked hard in their training will have experienced DOMS at some point. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is a little like the famous Marmite you either love it or you hate it. Some people feel like they have not worked hard if they don’t feel sore, or get DOMS, after and others train in fear of feeling sore or being unable to move. So we know DOMS makes us ache, but let’s look at what is DOMS and why you get DOMS.
DOMS describes the muscle pain, muscle soreness or muscle stiffness that occurs in the day or two after exercise. Research suggest that this is most frequently felt when you begin a new exercise programme, change your exercise routine, or dramatically increase the duration or intensity of your exercise routine.
Although DOMs can be alarming for people new to exercise, DOMS is a perfectly normal response to a change in training or unusual exertion. DOMS actually is an important part of the training process and adaptation process that leads to greater strength and stamina as the muscle recovers. Without these microscopic tears which cause DOMS your body wouldn’t adapt and fight back being fitter, stronger and leaner.
It is important to distinguish between DOMS and muscle tears or sprains, The muscle soreness from DOMS is generally at its worst over the 48 hours after new, intense activity and gradually subsides over the following few days. Where as, the pain from a sprain will last much longer than this.
So What Causes DOMS? (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness)
DOMS occurs due to microscopic tears of the muscle fibres which happy when you exercise. The number of tears and the level of soreness is dependent on the intensity and duration of the exercise as well as the type of exercise, for example eccentric muscle contractions which are movements that cause the muscle to contract with force while the muscle lengthens can lead to higher levels of muscle soreness. So exercises such as sprints, squats and push- push ups and box jumps are popular culprits.
Performing new exercises, lifting heavier weights then normal or simply working at a higher intensity such as cycling or running faster will cause DOMS as your body is simply not used to these movement patterns or changes in intensity.
The higher the amount of microscopic tears the greater the level of DOMS as your body needs to adapt more to the new stimulus.
To read how to reduce and prevent DOMS take a look at the blogs below. However, in my experience the best way to get rid of DOMS is to get back active, a 20 minute easy run, walk or swim can soon loosen you up!