Training with DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness)

We’ve all been there. You wake up the morning after setting a new PR in a race, or completing your first strength session in months – and your muscles are screaming at you. That’s DOMS, and it’s an inevitable – if annoying – part of training. But should you push through the pain and train with DOMS, or give your body a break? Here’s everything you need to know.

What is DOMS?

Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness – otherwise known as DOMs – are the achy, stiff muscles you get after exercise. If you’ve ever struggled to walk the day after a marathon, or had sore hamstrings the day after doing heavy deadlifts in the gym, you’ll know exactly what we’re talking about.

Unlike the immediate burning sensation you might feel during tough VO2 max intervals on the bike, or running hard hill repeats, DOMS tends to creep up on you later. It usually hits you anywhere between 12 and 72 hours after exercise, but it usually peaks between 24 and 48 hours after a hard session. You won’t feel DOMS during a workout, and you’ll likely feel just fine immediately after a tough workout, only for muscle soreness to hit you later – and it’s this delay that gives DOMs its name.

What Causes DOMS?

DOMS is caused by microscopic tears in your muscle fibres during exercise. It typically happens when you do new or intense exercises, particularly eccentric movements (which is when your muscles lengthen under tension). That means that you’re more likely to experience DOMS after running downhill, hard intervals on the bike, or walking lunges with heavy weights.

When your muscles are torn, your body sends white blood cells to the area – which causes swelling and sensitivity. That’s when you get sore muscles and stiffness. But DOMS is nothing to worry about. It’s a totally normal part of the muscle repair and growth process, and it will go away – although you might feel uncomfortable for a few days first.

Should You Train With DOMS?

So, should you be training with sore muscles? There’s no one-size-fits all answer. In general, you can train with DOMS (and you may even find it helps to ease your muscle soreness). But you should listen to your body – training with extremely sore muscles is likely to do more harm than good.

If you have mild DOMS and can still move through a full range of movement, then light training is usually fine. Generally, active recovery is the best way to relieve the pain of DOMS, rather than taking complete rest or trying to do any hard sessions.

But with that said, if you have moderate or severe DOMS (meaning you can’t move properly or maintain good form, or are finding it difficult to do normal everyday activities like climbing stairs), then it’s best to rest or focus on different muscle groups.

Try not to take full rest though – while it might seem counterintuitive, sitting on the sofa all day could actually make muscle stiffness worse. But equally, going too hard too soon when your muscles are already stiff could lead to an increased risk of injury and potentially delay your recovery. So try to find a happy medium, with a gentle walk, or a slow spin of the legs on the bike.  

Smart Training Strategies with DOMS

If you decide that your muscle pain isn’t too bad, and you’re able to train through it, then the key is to make sure that you work with your body rather than against it. That means:

For Runners:

• Drop your pace. If you have speed work or hill reps scheduled on your plan but you’re experiencing DOMS, it’s wise to skip that session. But that doesn’t mean you can’t run at all. Instead, head out for an easy run at a conversational pace.

• Choose flat routes. Reduce eccentric stress on sore muscles by choosing a flat route over a hilly one.

• Reduce the distance. If you have a long run planned, you may not be able to face it with stiff legs. You could instead reduce the distance and instead focus on maintaining good running form.

• Skip the run: If you really can’t face a run (even an easy one), try going for a swim, cycling, or hitting the elliptical trainer instead.

For Cyclists:

• Avoid big climbs. Take a day off from grinding up climbs – instead stick to easy gear ratios.

• Keep it easy. Avoid further stressing sore muscles with sprints, intervals, or hill work and instead keep your effort in zone 1-2. That means you should be able to chat easily while cycling, without feeling fatigued or stiff.

• Go indoors. It can be easier to control your intensity and effort on an indoor trainer, rather than contending with headwinds and hills outside.

For Gym Training:

• Work different muscle groups. If your legs are destroyed, don’t load up the squat rack. Instead, focus on upper body or core exercises instead.

• Swerve HIIT sessions. Skip your HIIT class if you’re feeling stiff – it’s only likely to make you feel worse, and may prolong your recovery.

• Choose reps over weights. Rather than loading heavy, you may find it’s less stress on your body to focus on lighter weights and higher reps.

Active Recovery Options:

• Don’t feel up to running, cycling or hitting the gym? You can still go for a gentle walk or easy hike – just make sure that the route isn’t too hilly. 

• Swimming is a low-impact exercise that’s still a great full body workout – perfect for days when you have DOMS but still need to cross train.

• Try yoga or dynamic stretching, both of which can help to improve mobility when your muscles are feeling tight.

• Foam rolling, self massage or even a gentle sports massage can all help to reduce DOMS and flush out sore muscles.

How to Beat DOMs

The bad news? It’s not possible to completely eliminate DOMS. But there is good news: there are ways you can reduce both the severity and the duration, so you’ll be back out there doing what you love before you know it.

Research has shown that the most effective means of alleviating pain during DOMS is to exercise, while cryotherapy, stretching, homeopathy, ultrasound and electrical current treatment have all been shown to make no difference when it comes to reducing sore muscles during DOMS.

So while light exercise is the best way to get through your DOMS, there are a few ways that you can reduce how bad your DOMS are, and how long the soreness lasts for:

• Gradually increase the intensity and duration of your exercise, rather than jumping in at the deep end. This will help your muscles to adapt, so they’re less likely to be painful.

• Prepare your muscles for exercise by warming up properly. That means dynamic rather than static stretching and light cardio.

• Make sure you get plenty of rest. That doesn’t just mean taking rest days between workouts, but also making sure that you get good quality sleep – aim for 7-9 hours per night, and try to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every night.

• Make sure you stay hydrated before, during and after exercise.

• Massage may help to reduce muscle soreness and stiffness, but avoid painful sports massages in the day or two after a hard session – instead request a lighter touch or opt for a more gentle style.

• Regularly stretching and foam rolling can help to relieve muscle tension and knots, which may keep you more mobile when DOMS does strike.

• Soak in a warm bath with Epsom salts, which can relax your muscles and may reduce pain.

Your DOMS recovery time shouldn’t take too long – generally anywhere between 24 and 72 hours after its onset. So even if your muscles feel terrible today, you should be back to normal within a few days.