Ouch I am sore, an excuse not to workout?

I love the feeling of waking up in the morning stretching out and instantly knowing that I am going to be sore when my feet hit the ground.   I peak my feet out from under the covers into the cool morning air and slide them to the floor.  Upon standing, I feel it.  I am sore.  That soreness means my workout the day before was probably amazing, and at the very least challenging or different than I usually work.   This makes me smile.  My friends think this makes me crazy.

This soreness is also called Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, or DOMS.  How does DOMS occur, and what is it?   DOMS is basically small tears in the muscle and as the tears heal the muscle grows stronger. DOMS can be experienced by anyone at any fitness level.   That is right beginners, your friends working out at the advanced level can (and do) feel the same thing.   That is the good news.  Do you want to know the bad news?  Sore muscles are not an excuse to take a few days off.     

So, what do you do to prevent and treat DOMS? 

•  Always warm up, warm muscles will tear less.  Less tearing means less soreness.
• Stretch out your muscles when your workout is done.  Hold each stretch for at least 10-15 seconds.   Believe me, the stretching not only feels good, but has a benefit.  
• When you have DOMS, take an anti-inflammatory.  It will help the pain and the inflammation.
• If DOMS is really bad ICE it!
• Make your next few days, "active recovery" days. Don't hit the sore muscle groups really hard right away, but add in cardio, or yoga, and make those days still count!  On top of still getting your workout in, staying active can make those muscles feel better.

Remember that some soreness is not DOMS.  Make sure you do not have a sprain or a strain!  A good way to tell is if your pain is one sided.     One sided pain indicates injury, so get it checked out.

Here are a few links for more information if you need it:

Sports Fitness Advisor
Sports Medicine