Returning to the gym may lead to increased risk of injury [Cheung et al, 2012].
That is, if you don’t manage your load and DOMS correctly.
Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness (DOMS) only effect is not just sore muscles from eccentric training load. It also leads to functional limitations.
This could include:
- Decreased range of motion
- Incorrect perception of your movement
- And overestimation of force production.
- More simply put, you won’t move as well as you think you will and increase your chance of injury, getting hurt because you are fatigued!
“Why all doom and gloom coach?” I hear you say. Well, it’s easy to decrease this – and I want to share 3 simple things you should do in October as you return to training:
1. Gradually introduce eccentric training.
For example, if you haven’t touched a barbell for 15 weeks, don’t just go and do 50 barbell squats. Do a few sets with moderate rest, keeping the rep range under 30 for the first 2-3 weeks.
2. If planning to train more than 3 times in a week, use alternating days to train smaller or opposition muscle groups.
For example, if you did a bike and push-up workout on Monday, you can do a kettlebell swing and squat workout Tuesday.
3. Rest! I really should put this first.
You can not out train too much training volume! If your body has DOMS, it’s ok to take a day off, you’ll still achieve your goals and are more likely to achieve them as you will be less likely to get hurt!
I’ll link paper below, however in the meantime, if you currently don’t have a plan to return to gym and are looking for some guidance, click the link in our bio and ask about our 21 day trial.
Our program is structured and reverse engineered from March 2022 to help you progress consistently and intelligently.
Send this to a mate who is going to go to hard when gyms open.
DOMS Research – https://bit.ly/2YbqnL1