When will I stop getting DOMS from leg day?

[randy321]

@protorayish

My issue is that despite not exactly being “new” to the gym or fitness generally, my DOMS after my quads-focused leg day is still pretty bad. It often lasts 3+ days

Are you stretching? If any part of my body is sore, I do a good 15 minute stretch session and it really helps alleviate the pain. Foam rolling also really helps me

 

[protorayish]

@randy321 I do a warm up stretch routine but my cool down is generally just walking back from the gym - I could definitely improve here by being more consistent on my workout days and stretching on my rest days. Thank you!

 

[superjohn112]

@protorayish Stretching afterword is SO much more important than stretching before.

 

[randy321]

@protorayish Yeah try doing some deep stretches. I did a pretty heavy leg day last week and my legs were killing me on the second day. So I did a really full, deep stretch and most of the soreness was gone by the next day

 

[iccs]

@protorayish At it for 5 years going on 6. It’s a sign you have done damage to the muscle fibers which is a sign of progress. It won’t go away unless you stop working hard.

Get heavier into nutrition and add more rest days and mobility work.

 

[cd1]

@protorayish If you’re lifting weights 4 times a week and also doing intense cardio 2-3 times a week, I wonder if, assuming you’re doing the same quad day routine every week, the problem is getting rest and not giving your body enough time to actually recover? If you’re not doing the same routine every week, then that’s definitely the culprit. I’ve been lifting for three years now and I do 4 week cycles and I’m always a little sore the first week of the cycle just because the exercises are new.

Either way, you may want to track calories for a little bit and make sure you’re actually getting enough. Calories (including protein, which looks like you’re hitting), rest, and quality sleep are key to recovery.

 

[protorayish]

@cd1 Thank you! I have been doing the same routine each week for approximately 3 months before switching it up, so I could try changing it more often for sure. I think my calories are around 2300 or so, but this a rough calculation based on my food scale measurements - I could definitely be more precise at least for a little bit.

 

[taramed71]

@protorayish Still waiting for mine to go away after 7+ years lol

 

[randy321]

@taramed71 Same but add an extra year lol

 

[lukeyg7]

@protorayish In my experience.. it’s possible it never goes away. Ive been lifting for over 10 years and anytime I change my plan, increase weight or increase reps I’ll be sore/fatigued.

In those 10 years I’ve had periods where lifting wasn’t my priority, for example when marathon training. To avoid DOMs impacting my runs I always ran before I lifted and I didn’t lift to failure or try to increase the weight much if any

 

[anon103]

@protorayish Things that make DOMS more likely:

• working that muscle 1x/week or less (so...a once-a-week quad day)
• high reps
• new/different exercises
• not enough protein
• not enough total calories

If some of this looks familiar, consider tweaking those factors. Probably the first thing I'd change if I were you is to do some quad work on the second leg day.

 

[protorayish]

@anon103 Thank you for this! So you consider the soccer and running to not be enough quad engagement other days of the week? As in, another weight-training quad day may be needed? (not necessarily exclusively quads but, like you say, adding a bit into another day’s lifts)

 

[anon103]

@protorayish No, it's not the same kind of work. I would do something like, swap the split squats for one of your hamstring exercises so that you have squats one leg day and split squats another.

 

[sonyalb]

@protorayish i’ve been lifting for 2+ years and so far it never goes away

 

[revtami]

@sonyalb Wow Is it still As bad as your first leg day.