Building your body through strength training workouts adds size to your muscles and lessens your likelihood for arthritis pain. Your muscles will naturally be sore on the morning after a workout and need time to heal. Although athletes often return to the gym with sore muscles to obtain strength benefits quickly, a workout when your body isn't ready leads to injuries or burnout. Recognize the safe way to build muscle to protect yourself from serious injury.
About Muscle Building
Your trainer may recommend strength training to help you develop muscle size and strength, as well as to strengthen your bones and enhance flexibility and endurance. Strength training also contributes to reduced weight, as muscle burns calories quicker than fat. Strength workouts feature more than just barbells and dumbbells or lifting machine weights. Muscle size increases when you perform leg squats, abdominal crunches and pushups, or stretch with resistance bands.
Soreness & Size
You compromise strength training results when you exercise with sore muscles. MayoClinic.com recommends visiting the gym only to two three times weekly for at least 30 minutes, and discourages athletes from exercising the same muscle two days in a row. Your muscles will naturally be sore on the day after a workout, and discomfort may last for as long as 72 hours. The soreness is the result of minor tearing that occurs in your muscle fibers and alerts your muscles to heal and strengthen --- which makes recovery time essential. Your muscles will rebuild and grow stronger with sufficient rest, but testing a muscle too early can result in injuries and muscle deterioration.
Recovery Time
Performing an aerobic workout is safe during your sore muscle recovery period and strengthens your heart, lungs and entire body. Doctors recommend swimming, brisk walking, bike riding and other activities for 30 to 60 minutes on four to six days each week. Consider a few exercises you'll enjoy and begin at a slow pace until your body feels ready to advance to moderate intensity. People who perform aerobic exercise generally enjoy a lesser risk for diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease.
Additional Risk
Forcing sore muscles into action represents a common mistake made by strength trainers, although you'll also be more likely to suffer fractures, sprains and strains when you attempt to lift weights too large for your body. Protect your muscles by starting with a weight heavy enough so that you can lift at least 12 or 15 repetitions without jerking or losing control of your breathing. Muscles also suffer when you extend your workout to gain additional benefits. You'll likely be lifting with less intensity, which is ineffective for muscle building and elevates your injury risk.
References
- Merck Manuals.com: Starting an Exercise Program; September, 2007
- Cleveland Clinic: Weight Training: Common Mistakes
- FamilyDoctor.org: The Exercise Habit
- MayoClinic.com; Weight Training: Do's And Don'ts Of Proper Technique; Mayo Clinic Staff
- KidsHealth.org; Strength Training; May, 2009
- MayoClinic.com; Strength Training: Get Stronger, Leaner, Healthier; Mayo Clinic Staff
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