When I work out, I try to vary my exercise from day to day. Not only does it prevent me from getting bored, but it also gets me to work different muscle groups. When you jump into a new exercise routine or complete a pretty tough workout, you'll probably wake up the next day and be so sore, it hurts to laugh. I love that feeling because it reminds me how hard I worked, but is it unhealthy for your body to be sore every day?
Let's talk about why we get sore in the first place. That feeling is caused by microscopic tears in your muscle fibers, and you can feel the effects 24 to 48 hours after strenuous exercise. As your body repairs the damaged muscles, they become even stronger, which is a good thing. A little minor soreness is your body's way of letting you know that your muscles are adapting to your fitness routine. It's completely normal to feel sore even if it's every day, but if you're feeling severe pain, you may have an injury, so it's best to get that checked by a doctor.
If you know it's just soreness that you feel, it's definitely okay to still work out. Listen to your body though. If you're hurting too much to walk normally, then you should probably skip the run today and give your muscles a chance to heal. You can still work out, but do some gentle walking, take a yoga class, or focus on working other muscle groups instead. Working sore muscles can actually make them feel better because it brings blood to those areas, which helps promote healing.
Fit's Tips: If the pain is really bad, get a massage or take an OTC anti-inflammatory and skip the gym.
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I do the whole listneing to my body thing. If what I worked out the night before is buggin me at work enough for me to be in pain, then I won't work that muscle group out the next nigth.