How Your Muscles Adapt to Tough Workouts
Damage and the repeated bout effect of arm, leg, and trunk muscles induced by eccentric resistance exercises
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Practical Takeaways
If you are starting a new intense exercise or returning after a break, expect significant soreness and strength loss, but know that repeating the movement within two weeks will drastically reduce future damage.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Practical Takeaways
If you are starting a new intense exercise or returning after a break, expect significant soreness and strength loss, but know that repeating the movement within two weeks will drastically reduce future damage.
Publication
Journal
Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports
Year
2019
Authors
T. Chen, Tsung-Jen Yang, Min-Jyue Huang, Ho-Seng Wang, Kuo‐Wei Tseng, Hsin-Lian Chen, K. Nosaka
Related Content
Claims (4)
If you do a tough, unfamiliar full-body workout and then repeat the exact same workout two weeks later, your body will experience much less muscle soreness, strength loss, and tissue damage. This shows that your muscles quickly adapt to the same type of stress, protecting you from injury the second time around.
When people who don't exercise regularly try a new type of strength workout that focuses on lengthening muscles, their upper body and back muscles get much weaker and more sore than their leg muscles. This shows that different parts of the body are more sensitive to the stress of unfamiliar exercise.
Doing a new, intense workout that focuses on lengthening muscles under tension can cause temporary muscle damage and soreness. This shows up as a noticeable drop in strength, higher pain levels, and a spike in a specific muscle enzyme in the blood for up to four days.
Doing a tough workout twice in a row actually protects your muscles from damage. After your first really hard session, your body adapts so that your next session won't cause muscle proteins to leak into your bloodstream like it did the first time.