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What Every Athlete Should Know about DOMS and Recovering from Muscle Soreness
WHAT IS DOMS?
If you are athletic and tend to read articles about health and fitness, you may have stumbled upon a headline or two that mentions an ailment called 'DOMS' and thought 'is that some sort of disease of the month?' DOMS or Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness is not a disease but rather a popular new buzz word that simply describes discomfort or pain in muscles associated with increased physical exertion. Often confused with acute muscle soreness, DOMS does not result right after exercising; often 1 to 3 days can go by before it the soreness comes on. Typical symptoms include muscle stiffness, strength loss and swelling that usually subside within 7 days without any special treatment.
Although it can be annoying and uncomfortable, DOMS is pretty common and is a normal bodily response to greater intensity, increased duration and unusual physical activities. It is part of the body's adaptation process, which leads to increased stamina and strength as the muscles recuperate and build.
WHO GETS IT AND HOW?
DOMS is not partial to any age, sex or physical training. Anybody can get it regardless of muscular maturity or conditioning. It strikes anyone especially at the beginning of a new workout program, increased exercise intensity or change in sports activity.
It is believed that DOMS is a result of the microscopic tearing of muscles and subsequently setting off an inflammatory response. It is predominantly caused by exercise such as downhill running, going down the stairs, plyometrics and resistance training, although any movement the body is not used to can also lead to it. The degree of tearing and inflammation depends on how long, how hard and what type of exercise you do.
WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT?
Prevention and treatment of DOMS is important to coaches, trainers and therapists because the pain and discomfort associated with DOMS can hamper performance and impair physical training. DOMS is bothersome and very common but it does not necessarily have to be part of anyone's exercise program.
In the past, stretching before and after exercising was one of the recommended ways to avoid DOMS or any exercise related muscle soreness. However, a study published in 2007 by a research team in Australian showed that stretching was not effective in avoiding muscle soreness.
With inflammation as one of the main symptoms of DOMS, most athletes use NSAIDs (Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs) like ibuprofen, aspirin or naproxen to temporarily control the soreness. NSAIDs lessen the muscle pain but do not actually speed up the healing process and overuse of these drugs can also cause serious adverse effects like hypertension and gastrointestinal bleeding.
Here are some things you can do to prevent or minimize DOMS:
- Raise your heart beat level with a warm-up well before any activity and completely cool down afterwards.
- When starting a new exercise or activity, do it gradually and build up the intensity and duration not more than 10% per week.
- Avoid making a sharp increase in the duration of your activity.
- Avoid making sudden alterations in the type of activity or exercise you're doing.
Take natural food supplements that promote general good health and have anti-inflammatory properties like fish oil.
FISH OIL! REALLY?!
It turns out that oil from cold water oily fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies and sardines is rich in something called omega-3 fatty acids. These fatty acids have proven protective healing effects for arthritis, dermatitis, cardiovascular conditions, and other inflammatory diseases, and they also regulate cholesterol in the body as well.
The fish themselves do not really produce the omega-3 fatty acids but accumulate them from either eating microalgae rich in these fatty acids or by eating other fish that have eaten these microalgae.
Omega-3 fatty acids, particularly EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), are recognized for their strong anti-inflammatory properties. Omega-3 fatty acids act on the muscle fibers, where the pain comes from. These acids stimulate the production of anti-inflammatory hormones, regulate and prevent formation of pro-inflammatory agents, increase elasticity of muscles to reduce the risk and degree of muscular injury during workouts, and influence the cartilage cells to enhance cellular repair capabilities.
After long term use of omega-3 fatty acids, no significant adverse reactions have been noted compared to serious side-effects from long term use of NSAIDs and other analgesic drugs. With their potent anti-inflammatory effects in combination with their cardiovascular and other health benefits, omega-3 fatty acids are the safe nutrient choice for the alleviation of the symptoms of DOMS. |
