Soreness is not an indicator of a good workout, and not being sore doesn’t mean your workout didn’t count.
That day-after ache (DOMS) mostly tells you that you did something new, not something effective.
Progress is more reliably measured in your training log: more weight, more reps, more control over time, sore or not.
Rachael (a reader and all-around amazing person) sent me a question about this so well-organized it came with multiple choice answers. 😃
Is severe soreness in the following day or two [after a workout]:
A) A sign that I did a really great workout, good job pushing myself to the limit?
B) A sign that I really overdid it and should have stopped earlier?
C) Neither, just a matter of personal preference. If it bothers me, I can try to avoid it next time. If it doesn’t bother me, grin and bear it, but no extra fitness points for getting to a point of soreness?
I LOVE this question, because almost everyone who’s getting started (or starting again) wonders the same thing:
“If I’m not sore the next day, did that workout even count?”
What soreness actually tells you
Quick definition first. That achy, stiff, “why does it hurt to sit on the toilet” feeling that shows up a day or two after a workout has a name: DOMS, or Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness.
It usually peaks somewhere around 24-72 hours after you train.
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Severe soreness is NOT an indicator of a good workout.
It’s a sign that you did something new that your body isn’t used to yet:
- a new exercise program
- a bigger range of motion than you’re used to
- coming back after time off (that’s when I personally get the MOST sore)
- more emphasis on the eccentric portion of a lift (the down phase, which is known to produce more soreness)
So it’s not something you need to chase.
But it’s also not something to be afraid of, especially if you switch up your routine and are mildly sore for a day or two.
Your body is adapting quickly! And as you adjust to the new exercises, you’ll be less and less sore from it.
Are there any benefits to soreness?
So when is soreness helpful, if ever?
Soreness can give us a useful signal that we worked a muscle we were trying to target and hadn’t felt before.
But if you’re SUPER sore? Like, can’t get out of bed the next day and have to waddle around like a newborn giraffe sore? That’s a sign the jump was bigger than your body needed.
And the real cost (beyond the discomfort) is that it gets in the way of your next couple of workouts. Either because your technique gets sloppy because everything hurts, or you’re so wrecked that you don’t want to show up at all.
The best way to lower your odds of severe DOMS is to ease into a new program slowly.
Start with fewer sets and lighter weights than you think you need, and build from there. 💪
Wait, don’t I have to push myself?
Yes! You DO need to push yourself over time in order to make progress:
- lift a little more weight
- do another rep or set
- run a little faster or a little longer
That’s the law of progressive overload, and there’s no getting around it.
Sometimes adding that extra bit will make you sore. Other times, it won’t.
But it’s the underlying principle that matters: are you asking a little more of yourself over time? Not: did it hurt afterward?
The Minty Toothpaste Effect
So why do we care so much about soreness?
Here’s what I think we’ve fallen into with fitness in general.
We as humans operate really well with feedback. If we touch a hot stove, we get burned and know not to do that again.
The same goes for fitness.
We want to know, immediately after doing something, whether it worked or it didn’t.
And with strength training, you don’t feel stronger the next day. It takes time to build up.
So we reach for proxies that close that feedback loop.
“Did I get sore? OK, I did something.”
“Am I really sweaty? Great, that counted.”
It’s exactly like the story of minty toothpaste.
As the story goes, toothpaste manufacturers had a hard time selling their product until they added mint.
Suddenly, there was a tingly clean feeling you could latch onto. “Oh, this IS working.”
The mint doesn’t clean your teeth. But it’s associated with the thing that does, and it gave people something to feel.
That’s where soreness sits for me.
It’s not the REASON you’re getting stronger.
But it can be associated with the work you do, especially as a beginner who is new to exercise, so we’ve learned to chase the tingle.
What to measure instead
Measure your output:
✅ How much weight, how many reps, how many sets are you doing?
✅ Is it going up over time?
✅ Do you feel more stable and controlled with the exercise than you did last month?
Then great! It’s working. Doesn’t matter if you never get sore.
And if you do end up super sore after trying something new, it’s not that you “failed”.
Just take it as a cue to introduce things more gently next time. 😊
So, back to Rachael’s multiple choice question.
C is really close. But I’ll add an fourth option:
D) Soreness tells you what was NEW. Your training log tells you what’s WORKING.
No extra fitness points for being sore. No points off if you do end up sore, either.
All the points gently ramping things up over time, and showing up again next time. 🔥
-Matt
Quick recap
Is it bad if I’m never sore? No. If your weights, reps, or control are improving over time, your training is working, sore or not.
How long does DOMS last? It usually peaks 24 to 72 hours after the workout and fades over a few days. If you’re regularly wrecked for longer, ease the jumps in your program.
Should I work out while sore? Mild soreness is fine to train through, and easy movement often helps. If you’re severely sore, target a different part of the body, scale down, or take another rest day; what we don’t want to do is have sloppy technique because we’re SO sore we can’t perform the exercise normally.
