Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness
February 5, 2006
If you are a regular exerciser and on the day after a
harder workout, you never feel soreness in your muscles, you will
not improve your fitness level as much as you could. Take a tip
from competitive athletes who train by taking a hard workout,
feeling sore on the next day and then take easy workouts until the
soreness goes away in a day or two.
The good soreness that makes you stronger is called
DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) and is caused by
microscopic tears in your muscle fibers. It is not caused by lactic
acid buildup. When muscles are damaged, they produce healing
prostaglandins that cause muscles to become bigger and stronger
than before they were exercised vigorously. Researchers have
shown that DOMS heals faster when you do nothing, but if you
take off every time your muscles feel sore, you will never become
an athlete and you will not reach a high level of fitness. When you
exert very slight pressure on your muscles when you have DOMS,
you cause muscle fibers to become more fibrous and they will
become stronger so they can withstand greater stress during your
harder workouts. Never try to put a lot of pressure on your
muscles when they feel sore. That will markedly increase your
chances of injuring yourself.
It is relatively easy to tell the difference between DOMS
and an impending injury. DOMS is usually symmetrical, involving
muscles equally on both sides of your body. An injury is more
likely to cause pain that is only on one side. DOMS does not feel
worse as you exercise at light intensity. An injury worsens with
continued use of the injured part. Stop exercising when you have
an injury.
When your muscles feel sore from exercising, take the
day off or exercise with very light resistance, such as running or
cycling very slowly, or lifting extremely light weights. Try
stretching gently to help restore flexibility. Deep massage may
help you to heal faster and toughen your muscles.
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Follow-up on losing belly fat:
A few weeks ago I said that the only way to reduce a fat stomach
is to lose weight overall (because there’s no such thing as spot
reduction. Many of you wrote saying "I have a fat belly but my arms and legs
are already too thin, so I can’t afford to lose any more weight."
Skinny arms and legs mean LACK OF MUSCLE, not lack of fat.
Cut out refined carbohydrates and start a weight lifting program,
to get rid of the dangerous belly fat and build up your skeletal
muscles. See my report #N239.
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Dear Dr. Mirkin: I’ve seen conflicting news stories on coffee an
diabetes. Should a diabetic drink coffee?
A survey reported in JAMA (July 6, 2005) showed that
drinking coffee reduces risk for developing type II diabetes, but
two recent studies suggest that once you have diabetes, drinking
coffee may be unwise. Canadian researchers writing in Diabetes
Care (March 2005) showed that caffeine significantly reduced
insulin sensitivity. In the July 2005 issue of the same journal,
scientists from Duke University Medical Center reported that
drinking coffee could upset a diabetic’s ability to metabolize sugar.
Blood sugar levels are supposed to rise after you eat. To
keep your blood sugar levels from rising too high, your pancreas
releases insulin. The researchers found that taking caffeine
causes blood sugar and insulin levels to rise even higher after
meals. If your blood sugar rises too high, sugar sticks to cells.
Once sugar is stuck on a cell membrane, it cannot be released
and is converted to a poison called sorbitol which destroys that
cell. High levels of insulin constrict arteries to cause heart attacks
and act directly on the brain to make you hungry, on your liver to
make more fat, and on the fat cells in your belly to pick up that fat.
If these studies are confirmed, diabetics will be advised to restrict
coffee as well as those foods that cause the highest rise in blood
sugar after meals.
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Dear Dr. Mirkin: Do my lifestyle choices really have much impact
on cancer prevention?
One in three of the seven million cancer death worldwide
is caused by nine potentially modifiable risk factors, according to a
study from Harvard Medical School (Lancet, November 19, 2005.)
Being overweight causes your full fat cells to release chemicals
that cause inflammation that can lead to cancer. Lack of fruit and
vegetables deprives you of antioxidants that prevent cancer. Lack
of exercise increases inflammation that causes cancer by the
same mechanism as full fat cells . Smoking exposes you to
nicotine that causes blood vessels to grow and nourish cancer
cells. Excess alcohol dehydrates cells, which can cause cancer.
Unprotected sex exposes you to cancer-causing viruses. Urban
air pollution and indoor smoke from solid fuels expose you to
carcinogens in the air, and contaminated injections expose you to
viruses and other agents that cause cancer. You can improve
your odds against cancer by avoiding overweight, eating lots of
fruits and vegetables, exercising, avoiding smoking and alcohol,
practicing safe sex, and avoiding indoor and outdoor air pollution
whenever possible. Avoid injections unless they are necessary for
health.
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Reports from DrMirkin.com
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How can you prevent gall stones?
Which is the more important blood pressure number?
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Recipe of the Week:
Portobello Mushroom Casserole
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