I’ve been training for over 10 years. As a general rule, I try not to train a muscle group if I still sense soreness in that muscle group. For instance, in college, when I didn’t really know what I was doing, I would basically do a shitload of squats on leg day. I really didn’t do a whole lot of other leg exercises. It would often take about two weeks for my legs to feel fresh again. So, I would wait two weeks before I did another leg day. While that may sound odd, I was Stronger in college then I have been since. I haven’t been able to do anywhere near that amount of weight.
These days, for instance, I trained chest and biceps the other day. Even though I did chest, my shoulders were a little sore from doing chest. Today I did shoulders, even though my shoulders are still a little sore. I feel like my shoulder regimen may have suffered a little bit today because of that. I just don’t know how much I should worry about it or not. The way that I look at it, it may have been better for me to wait longer to do shoulders, but I’m curious what other people think.
It is my opinion that if I hadn’t worked a muscle in a couple weeks, or so, say legs, and I did squats it would make me exceptionally sore. Very hard to walk down stairs. Nearly fall onto the toilet seat, etc. I would train at the next scheduled leg day. As the blood got pumping through my veins the soreness would subside. I see no harm in this approach. And likewise adding a new exercise might bring similar results. I still see no problem working that muscle on the next scheduled workout day.
If I hadn’t missed any workouts and didn’t do a new exercise and experienced soreness in the muscle belly, I would proceed with caution the next workout, testing the feel. If still sore after a few sets, I’d back off any exercise that made the muscle sore.
And of course all attachment soreness requires caution, at least until the pains goes away.
I think a distinction between ‘soreness’ and ‘pain’ is necessary to answer this question. If you’re sore a week after a training session, you’re probably fine to go at it again. I run PPL 2x per week so i’ve got at most 3 days to ‘recover’ between training sessions; often times i am still sore.
A muscle being sore shouldn’t prevent you from training it, but if your tendons are feeling like shit, or are in pain, then this is a recipe for injury.
Also, ‘recovery’ doesn’t mean DOMS are gone, it means your Central Nervous System (measureable by Heart Rate Variability) is ready to sustain this exertion again.
Many people train full body daily and have no problems. But anything with spinal compression (squats, deadlifts, etc.) will take some more time for your CNS to recover. Still, if your muscles are so sore that you cannot perform, then it sounds quite reasonable to wait a bit longer before making them undergo more damage.
DOMS - delayed onset muscle soreness has nothing to do with recovery… some people get it, some dont… i will get some DOMS if i dont train a while or if i do a new exercise… i never get sore doing anything i have done during the last month.
Some people get sore as fuck after every training. Unless it just bothers you, it has nothing to do with you being able to train or not, and it says nothing about your recovery.
English is not my first language so i might not be able to explain this correctly but DOMS occurs because some acids(i hope thats what they are called i english) build up in the muscle. Normally body clears of them via breathing and bloodflow. Some people combat those better, some worse, but its a metabolic(?!) process that is not connected to ones recovery and training.
Its kinda like the stupid idea that you have to get sore to have a good training - thats why trainers make you do 200 burpess and some weird ab workouts - those will burn you and make you sore…
You probably can jerk off long enough to get sore in some muscle. Doesnt mean you built your muscles, lol.
