What is Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS)?

DOMS is muscle pain that begins after you have done a hight-intensity worked out, that can cause microscopic tears in your muscle fibers. It starts a day or two after workout, you will not feel DOMs during workout.

Itziar San MartinSenior Physiotherapy

DOMS will occur at least after 12 to 24 hours after workout and the pain will peak one or three days after workout. Your body will respond to the damage in this period of time, with increasing of the inflammation and soreness in the muscles

The common symptoms are included:

• Muscles tenderness
• Reduce the ROM due to the pain
• Swelling in the affected muscles
• Muscles fatigue
• Temporary lost of the strengthening

High- intensity exercise can cause DOMS but in particular eccentric exercises, because it is producing a lot of stress in the muscles at the same time that you lengthen it.
Some people think that unless you feel sore after workout you are not making a proper training, but this is not true. Should be a progression in the type of training and you should not push your limits.

Listen to your body.

When the DOMS strike, after a training the best advise that you can follow is, try for the next day gentle movements, it might lessen the soreness. Like yoga, low intensity walking, cycling or swimming

Also, you can try to calm down the pain and the stiffness in the muscles, applying:

• Gentle massage 24/48 or 72 hours after the training
• Applying topical analgesic, like muscles creams
• Cold bath: Full body immersion in cold bath 10-15 C for 10-15 min
• Care of your diet.

DOMS rarely requires to visit doctor, but the American Council on Sport Medicine recommends for a medical assessment if:

• DOMS lasts longer that 7 days
• You suffer of abnormal color in your urine, could be the meaning of something more serious
• Several swelling in any part of your body.
• Sharp pain or numbness that it is increased as how was before

You can take steps of lessen the intensity of the DOMS, with this easy advises:

• Stay hydrated
• Proper warm-up
• 20 Min of cool down of low intensity exercises
• Take your training slowly

Emirates Specialty Hospital (DHHCC, Dubai)