I have a question. I did a strength workout. (The kind that has reverse lunges and curls and rows. )

Now, I've read that you have to challenge yourself and you should feel some soreness as the muscles repair themselves to get stronger.

But how much is too much? The next day I was in pain. It hurt to sit, I had to hold onto something to bring me down, climbing stairs was agony. I was supposed to clean up for company this weekend but I couldn't really bend too much and thought it better to just rest it out...Truthfully? I haven't worked the "glutes" (or anything else) in 10 years. And when I was doing the work out it was hot and burned a little at the end of the reps but I wasn't forcing myself to go crazy. I definitely didn't do anything to the point of failure on my muscles side. I was just working on the form and getting myself ready for when I really did challenge myself. I guess I underestimated the *** kicking I got.

So I guess my questions are...How much should it be sore the next day? How long should it be sore in the days after? Should it be sore at all? Will the soreness abate and lessen in intensity? Also, should I continue to do the same workout because in theory it should get easier each time? And also, should I wait for the soreness to disappear completely before attempting again?

Too many questions?

Sounds like you pushed a little -too- hard to start out.

You WILL be sore the next day after a muscle building workout...and when I worked with a trainer, I DID sometimes get so sore I couldn't easily sit down without holding onto something. But for your first time, you may want to ease into such heavy workouts and go with something that makes you a bit less "oh my word I'm going to die" sore. If you're that sore, I'd say you overdid it.

Take some Advil, and don't train those parts until the soreness is almost or completely gone.

Alright, fair enough. So what? Is once a week not enough? Is twice a week enough? Who wants to be sore every day of their life as they switch off "zones" . Is that just how it's supposed to be?

When you find a comfortable level of training (read: one that doesn't make you "I'm going to die" sore), if you're doing strength training every other day, yeah, you'll pretty much be a little sore every day. But it'll be "good" sore...I'm not quite sure how to best describe it. It will be the kind of sore that makes you feel strong and powerful, not that makes you feel like you want to die.

I work at a level where I'm a bit sore the day after, but not two days after, and lift 2 days a week. So I have workout day, sore day, non-sore day, workout day, sore day, non-sore day.

Wow-how timely for me! I did a "Buns of Envy" workout last night (one of the free exercise segments on Comcast's "On Demand"- love them!), and thought "what's the big deal? I push that elliptical cycle pretty hard, right? Wrong. That perfect, toned little instructor did not even break a sweat, but today I can't sit down without wincing. No one is envying my buns right now! So, I did some nice Cardio Yoga, jogging, and hooping for my routine today and let my poor buns rest until tomorrow.

Hahaha! I looked forward to being in pain in a comfortable and powerful way!

HAHAHAHA! That made me laugh out loud.

Cardio is easy breezy for me but seriously this strength stuff intimidates me. I guess I have to remember that no excercise is easy in the beginning.

Yup! It's funny ... I was thinking about it last night at the gym when I was doing lunges and again this morning. When I got to the office, and sat down I thought ... hmmm ... my butt isn't sore; that means I need to add more weight to my lunges.

It's funny that you do get to a point where you welcome the soreness because you know it means you've gotten in a good workout.

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Oh and to add to Manda's advice - don't train those parts until the soreness goes away, but that doesn't mean don't workout at all. Some easy to medium treadmill or elliptical work *will* make you feel a little better. Nothing strenuous, but moving around helps the blood flow and loosens the muscles some. Easy and gentle stretching helps, too.

And drink LOTS of water to help flush out the muscles.

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What Amanda said...she's a smart girl ...

I love the soreness though .... But eventually the really baaaaad soreness goes away and it's just a bit sore, so just keep at it and it will all be good...