How hard you feel you worked or how recovered you feel doesn’t match up with how swollen your muscles look — you can feel wiped out even if your muscles aren’t actually swollen.
Scientific Claim
In trained males, acute changes in muscle thickness and echo-intensity following resistance training are not predictive of perceived exertion or recovery status, indicating that subjective feelings are not reliably linked to objective morphological changes.
Original Statement
“Despite distinct perceptual and VL differences, no sustained muscle swelling or evidence of edema was observed, as MT and EI measurements returned to baseline within 24 hours post-session across all conditions.”
Evidence Quality Assessment
Claim Status
appropriately stated
Study Design Support
Design supports claim
Appropriate Language Strength
association
Can only show association/correlation
Assessment Explanation
The claim uses 'not predictive' and 'not reliably linked' — appropriate probabilistic language for an observational study showing dissociation between variables.
Evidence from Studies
Supporting (1)
Don't Sweat the Swelling: Exercise Volume's Transient Effects in Trained Males.
Even when guys felt more tired or less recovered after harder workouts, their muscles didn’t stay swollen or change in a way that matched how they felt—so how you feel doesn’t reliably tell you what’s happening in your muscles.