What causes doms? (delayed onset muscle sorness)

Ever wondered why your muscles get sore a day or two after your training session?DOMS, or delayed onset muscle soreness, happens when your body repairs micro tears in your muscles.

This post will go over what specifically causes DOMS, if it's mandatory for progress, and what we can do to speed up the recovery process.

Table of contents

• What causes DOMS

• Are DOMS a good sign?

• How to make DOMS go away faster

What causes doms?

The pain you feel is your body's natural response to the repair process.

When you train, it can cause microscopic damage to your muscles (that's not a bad thing). After your body notices this, immune cells are sent to repair it. This causes other assisting cells to accumulate around the damaged area, which increases tissue sensitivity and pain receptors.

Muscle damage is increased with eccentric contractions. These are when your muscles lengthen.

Example in a bicep curl:

• Eccentric contraction: lower the dumbbell away from your shoulders

• Concentric contraction: bringing the weight back up towards your shoulders

Example in the squat:

• Eccentric contraction: lowering your hips and squatting down

• Concentric contraction: Squatting back up

Quick recap

1. You work out, causing micro tears in your muscles

2. Your body notices the damage and sends in repair cells

3. This causes the damaged area to be more sensitive

4. This is what causes DOMS

5. It takes 1-3 days for this process to happen

   
   

Are DOMS a good sign?

I hear a lot of people proclaim their love for the soreness, that a good workout should always leave you feeling sore, or that not feeling sore after a workout is disappointing.

While I find this sentiment valid, DOMs are not always a good indicator of a successful workout.

A good workout is more than just intensity. Technique and progression are equally important.

If you train with improper form, you'll most likely feel sore for all the wrong reasons.

The classic example is when people squat or deadlift and feel their lower backs the day after. That's an indicator that the exercise technique was off.

Always feeling extremely sore after a workout can also be an indicator of a lack of progress or improper recovery.

How to make doms go away faster

Increasing blood flow to the damaged area is a simple way to speed up the recovery process.

Basically, light activity is better than no activity.

So if you feel like you can't get off the can the day after your leg day, go for a walk. Do an easy bike ride. Just don't sit on your couch hoping to make it better.

More blood flow will bring repair cells in and out faster.

On top of that, the usual recovery strategies like getting enough sleep and eating properly will also help speed up recovery.

Can you work out with DOMS?

As long as it's not too painful and doesn't compromise the quality of your session, you can still work out if you have DOMS.

The intensity of DOMs usually goes down the more you train. They'll never fully go away, but instead of having sore muscles for 3 days, you'll feel it for 1.

A good workout program should allow you to maximize your recovery time and optimize how often you can hit your muscles hard.

Does stretching help doms?

My opinion is no.

The classic, static stretching pulls on your muscles, which causes more micro tears. On top of that, getting an effective static stretch with doms is almost impossible because of the pain it'll cause.

Static stretching does not help DOMS

A better alternative is mobility training, or active stretching.

Does foam rolling help doms?

Foam rolling will have a similar effect to a massage by helping move fluids around. So yes, it can be helpful. It's better than stretching in any case.

Strategies to speed up recovery

1. Mobility/active stretching

2. Walking or any light activity

3. Foam rolling/massage

Conclusion

DOMS are a normal part of training, but they are not the goal.

Soreness simply means your body is responding to a new or challenging stimulus. It doesn’t guarantee muscle growth, and the absence of DOMS doesn’t mean your workout was ineffective.

What matters most is:

• Consistent training

• Good technique

• Gradual progression

• Enough recovery between sessions

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If soreness is so intense that it interferes with your training, it’s often a sign that something needs adjusting: volume, intensity, recovery, or exercise selection.

Train smart, recover well, and let progress be your main indicator.

If you’d like help structuring your workouts so you can make progress without constantly feeling beat up, you can check out my online training options here.

Happy training,

Clem