Sore muscles or something else?

Exercising regularly is one of the basic pillars of a healthy lifestyle. Sport is health. However, when we do it, we expose ourselves to certain ailments or injuries that can range from mild to more serious ones that require attention and treatment. Today we are going to talk about muscle soreness and give you some tips to identify them correctly.

The first step to avoiding injuries is to be responsible with your body and pay attention to its needs. It's great to go all out for the goals you set for yourself. However, achieving them doesn't mean pushing your body's limits. On the other hand, one of the most common discomforts that anyone, veteran or not, can experience is muscle soreness.

What are muscle soreness?

Muscle soreness is a small tear in muscle fibers that appears late , between 12 and 24 hours after training. It manifests itself through a sensation of muscle pain and occurs when we perform an activity that is not our usual one, we increase the intensity of the exercise or we involve muscle groups other than those we are used to. Muscle soreness reaches its maximum intensity of pain after 24-72 hours from physical effort and can last for a few days.

When we feel muscle pain in a specific area, as a result of muscle soreness, we may perceive other symptoms such as inflammation or limitations in the range of movement. Although it is a discomfort that gradually decreases over the days, sometimes it is so intense that it can be confused with a major injury.

There are a number of recommendations that can be followed when you have muscle aches. Generally, it is not necessary to stop the activity or rest. However, it would be advisable to continue with the activity involving other muscle groups and allowing the most affected area to recover properly. If, on the other hand, the pain is very intense and even incapacitating, it is advisable not to take any risks, stopping for a few days and observing the evolution and recovery of the muscles. Otherwise, we could expose ourselves to certain injuries to ligaments or tendons, aggravating a situation that is initially mild and requiring treatment.

How to distinguish them from a greater evil?

Despite being experienced at different intensities, muscle aches have a very noticeable and progressive recovery. They can easily last a whole week, however, as the days go by, a clear decrease in the intensity of the pain is perceived. A major injury manifests itself permanently and can even be aggravated by movement. It is important that, if you have any doubts, you consult a person trained to accurately assess the cause of the discomfort.