Is pain the next day a sign you worked your muscles too much?

[Emma]

I always wondered this because I have been told by a few different people that you shouldn't be so sore that it hinders your general movements and day to day living otherwise you overworked your muscles and this will result in them not building/growing. Wow, that was a bit of a run on sentence haha!

Anyways, I am just wondering if pain the next day after working out is a sign you have gone to far or if it is a sign you did enough. Like if you don't feel anything the next day, you didn't push hard enough. 

[James]

I would need a better definition of pain to really give an opinion on the topic. 

If I was not sore the day after a work out it meant to me I was working in my endurance zone the day before. Otherwise if I am working tempo on up I will always have soreness. I am able to make it so I do not get so sore by utilizing proper cool downs and getting in a good static stretch directly after the workout. 

I spend most of my time sore. When that soreness fades away I feel like I have adapted to the current load and its time to retest to get new FTP and CP scores (i train with power) and repeat the process. 

Pain would be disabling and to me it would mean I worked something wrong or was injured in some way. I don't know I have spent so much time teaching my self to get comfortable being uncomfortable that I seek that discomfort now. 

So get sore. That is the reward of hard work. 

[Emma]

When I am talking about pain, I mean like you get out of the bed the next day after doing squats and you feel a soreness in your muscles when you stand and walk. It doesn't keep you from walking, but you feel the pain. I have been told this is bad but I feel like this is the only way to know you actually put enough work in. 

[James]

5 minutes ago, Emma said:

When I am talking about pain, I mean like you get out of the bed the next day after doing squats and you feel a soreness in your muscles when you stand and walk. It doesn't keep you from walking, but you feel the pain. I have been told this is bad but I feel like this is the only way to know you actually put enough work in. 

That is a sign that things are working in my mind. Stretch through the soreness and embrace it. I would consider that having a great squat day 🙂 

[Sophia]

No pain no gain! You have to put in the effort and part of recovery is feeling sore afterwords. I think it is a good sign. So long as your soreness is gone within 48 hours, you have nothing to worry about in terms of overworking your body!