For example, if you have done a lot of heavy squats, and the next
day your thigh and buttocks are sore, this is D.O.M.S. The pain is
over a large area throughout the muscles, and usually on both sides.
The best thing to do is rest, gently stretch and avoid training the sore
body parts at that intensity for 48-72 hours.
Doing muscle building and strength training programs means you
will most likely get D.O.M.S. Although many people refer to this as a
‘good pain’, it is a commonly held misconception that unless they are
experiencing D.O.M.S they have not worked out hard enough. You
need to make sure you are on the correct graded training program
for your level of fitness, strength and conditioning.
Severe D.O.M.S
D.O.M.S is one thing, but severe D.O.M.S, whereby you have muscle
pain that prevents you from walking properly or standing up from a
seated position, means you have pushed it too far. If your client has
severe D.O.M.S, they are likely to change their patterns of movement
in order to avoid the pain in the muscles. This will make them
compensate during exercise with other muscle groups and overload
biomechanically, thereby causing an actual injury.
THE QUICK READ
• Clients may struggle to differentiate D.O.M.S from injury
• Over-training that results in severe D.O.M.S should be avoided
because it can lead to compensatory movement patterns that
result in an actual injury occurring
• A muscle injury is usually a muscle tear, and features a severe
and localised pain in one small area in the muscle
• Pain that comes on during exercise, eases afterwards and then
returns during exercise, is usually caused by inflammation or
irritation of tendons and joints.
Again, the treatment for severe D.O.M.S
is simply rest, then gentle stretching. The
client should also adjust their training in
order to avoid the problem reoccurring. If the
client has experienced severe D.O.M.S as a
result of following a training program that
you have prescribed for them, then you will
need to reassess the program and correct
its level and intensity.
Does your client have severe
D.O.M.S or an actual muscle
injury?
Determining whether it’s just severe
D.O.M.S, or whether your client has actually
suffered an injury, is all down to the nature
of the pain, the surface area and when it
happens. With a muscle injury, the pain is
localised to one small area in the muscle,
is more severe and has an ache with it.
There is sharp pain on flexing the muscle
and there is a loss of power. With injury the
pain comes on either during or immediately
after training (not the next day or so like with
D.O.M.S). The pain can last for many days,
and sometimes weeks or even longer. If your
client has pain like this, they most likely have
suffered a muscle ‘tear’.
As soon as they feel this type of pain,
your client needs to get the injury assessed
in order to ascertain the extent of the
damage and determine what to do about
it. This is not a time to just wait and hope
it goes away. Seeing a physiotherapist
for rehabilitation will increase the client’s
chances of returning to exercise more
quickly by helping their recovery, improving
their strength and preventing the breakdown
in their training regime. The physio will also
be able to work out why your client is getting
injured in the first place, and help prevent it
happening again.
When pain comes and goes, is it
an injury?
If your client is experiencing pain that comes
on during exercise but eases afterwards
and then returns when they exercise again,
they need to take notice. This type of pain
is usually from inflammation or irritation of
tendons and joints, and sometimes other
serious structures (like discs in the back).
The pain can occur with certain
movements, such as in the shoulder when
raising the arm, on the outside of the knee-
cap during a run, or in the lower back
after bending. As soon as the exercise or
movement ceases, the pain subsides, but it
30 | NETWORK SPRING 2019