Sorry to say it, but muscle soreness is not a valid gauge of anything other than the fact that you’re well, sore.
- Muscle soreness can NOT tell you whether or not your workout was effective.
- Muscle soreness can NOT tell you whether or not your personal trainer knows what they’re doing.
- Muscle soreness can NOT tell you if you’re burning more fat.
- Muscle soreness can NOT tell you if you’re getting stronger.
Muscle soreness might feel good to you if you are a workout junkie, and that's OK. I personally HATE being sore because it interferes with my workouts.
What CAN muscle soreness tell you?
Well first of all, it is completely normal and expected consequence of vigorous physical activity. If you’re physically active you will most likely going to experience muscle soreness at one time or another - and there is nothing wrong with that.
Muscle soreness also has the potential to be a good indicator of muscular damage. While this does not necessarily tell us whether or not a workout was effective, it may provide some insight for those looking to optimize muscle growth.
However, there is such a thing as too much muscle soreness. Not only can chasing muscle soreness be dangerous in that it can lead to excessive training volumes and intensities, but extreme muscle soreness has been shown to affect exercise form (increasing risk of injury) and even negatively affect motivation to workout.
How do you know if your workouts are any good?
Well, were you able to do it faster than before? Are you losing weight? Or gaining muscle? Were you able to lift more weight?
Keeping TRACK of your workouts to see if you are improving over time is the best indicator of whether or they are working for you and your body.
Reposted From:
http://www.syattfitness.com/conditioning/fitness-myths-need-die-muscle-soreness/
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