# Soreness after exercise > Muscle soreness a day or two after new or harder exercise is common, usually harmless and fades over a few days. How sore you are doesn't show how good a session was. Gentle movement is a reasonable way to ease it, and severe or worsening soreness is worth checking. - Type: Guide - Topic: Health, Safety & Recovery › Rest & Recovery - Reviewed by: Andrew Schox, BSc(Hons) PGradDipPod MPod, Podiatrist (2026-10-21) - URL: https://twikka.com/learn/soreness-after-exercise - Updated: 2026-10-21 - **Soreness a day or two later is common and usually harmless.** It often follows something new or harder than usual, including vigorous housework or DIY [1]. - **Soreness isn't a score.** How sore you feel doesn't reliably show how good a session was [2]. - **It gets milder as you repeat an activity.** Your body adapts, so keep going gently [2]. - **No remedy is clearly proven.** Gentle movement is a reasonable choice, and most soreness settles by itself [2]. - **Severe or worsening soreness with swelling, weakness or dark urine needs urgent medical attention** [3]. ## Why am I sore two days after exercise? Soreness a day or two after exercise is usually delayed onset muscle soreness, or DOMS. It is a common effect of being active, especially at a vigorous level, and it is normally harmless [4][1]. It can follow sport, but also work or vigorous housework and DIY [1]. The timing is typical. After unfamiliar exercise, soreness tends to appear 12–24 hours later and peak between 24 and 72 hours [2]. Muscle soreness that comes on a day or so after new or harder exercise, and fades over a few days (rarely more than five), is normal. It often follows a sudden increase in how long, how often or how hard you are active, which is why it is so common when you restart after a break [1]. Too little warm-up can also add to it [1]. Soreness is usually strongest after the first unfamiliar session, because a first session protects against damage from a later, similar one [2]. To keep it manageable: - **Start with an amount you can manage,** then build up time, how often and how hard slowly rather than all at once. - **Do a gentle warm-up** before you start. > **Try this:** Next time you try something new, keep it to an amount you could comfortably repeat in two days. Add a little each week. ## Is soreness a sign of a good workout? Not reliably. Many people who train regularly treat soreness as one of the best signs that training is working [4]. But how sore you feel is poorly matched to other signs of muscle damage, so it doesn't seem to show how much damage there was [2]. Gains in strength, muscle size and power can happen whether you are quite sore or only a little [5]. Exercise doesn't have to hurt to work: soreness isn't needed for progress. Pain during exercise is a signal to stop or ease off. So don't judge a session by how sore you are. Feeling no soreness doesn't mean it didn't count, and being sore doesn't mean you did it better. Soreness and muscle damage are greatest after a first unfamiliar session and fall as you repeat it [6][2]. What matters more is starting small and being regular. Add repetitions, sets, time and how often you do it slowly. Soreness tends to ease as your body gets used to the activity. ## How do you ease sore muscles? No treatment has been clearly proven to reduce soreness much, so simple and low-effort options are a sensible choice [2]. Don't expect any one remedy to remove it quickly; it usually settles within a few days. - **Gentle movement:** an easy walk or other light activity may help a little, though the support for this is weak [7][8]. - **Massage:** it may help a little, but how much is uncertain [9]. A 20–30 minute massage soon after exercise has been reported to reduce soreness for around 24 hours [7]. Treat it as optional. - **Foam rolling:** it slightly reduces how sore muscles feel, but the effects are minor [10]. How it might help isn't fully understood and possible harmful side effects have been suggested, so take care if you try it [10]. - **Stretching:** stretching after exercise doesn't change the main signs of muscle damage. Repeated stretching over the following days may reduce muscle stiffness [11]. If a movement causes pain, ease off rather than push through it. ## When is soreness something to get checked? Soreness is probably ordinary if it started a day or so after something new and is easing day by day. Notice when it started, how bad it is and whether it is improving. Soreness that is severe and getting worse points away from ordinary soreness, especially with swelling, marked loss of movement, weakness or dark urine [12]. These can be signs of rhabdomyolysis, a muscle condition. If you have muscle pain with swelling, weakness or dark urine, get medical attention urgently rather than waiting to see if it settles [3]. Rhabdomyolysis is relatively rare, but it can affect anyone after unaccustomed exercise, whatever their age or fitness, and it can be mistaken for ordinary soreness [12]. Symptoms may not start for hours or days after the muscle injury, so delayed soreness shouldn't simply be dismissed [3]. Getting treatment early helps avoid serious complications [3]. ## When to check with a health professional If you're starting exercise after a long break, it's always a good idea to see your doctor first. For an injury or a health condition, see a health professional, such as your doctor or a physio. Call your local emergency number for chest pain or pressure (or pain spreading to the arm, neck, jaw or back, especially with sweating or feeling sick), severe breathlessness, fainting or collapse, signs of a stroke, a serious injury, or someone who isn't safe. For anything else, such as a sore muscle or joint, ease off. Soreness that lasts longer than the few days you would expect, or keeps getting worse, is worth checking with your doctor, a physiotherapist or a local health advice line [1]. ## Quick answers ### Is it normal to be more sore as I get older? Age is one of several things that affect how sore you get and how long recovery takes. Others include your sex, nutrition, fitness level, genetics and how familiar the activity is. So how sore you feel depends on more than your age alone. ### Why am I sore when I haven't done much? How much you did matters less than how new it was to your body. A small amount of an unfamiliar activity can leave you sore, especially if you've been inactive for a while. Familiarity with the activity and your fitness level both play a part. ### Will I keep getting sore every time I exercise? Usually not. Soreness is typically worst after the first unfamiliar session, and your body adapts as you repeat it. Building up slowly keeps later sessions more comfortable. A new or harder activity may bring it back for a day or two. ## Sources 1. Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust (2026). MSK FAQs. https://www.leicspart.nhs.uk/msk-physiotherapy-resources-getting-started/msk-physiotherapy-resources-faqs/ 2. Hody S, Croisier J-L, Bury T, Rogister B, Leprince P (2019). Eccentric Muscle Contractions: Risks and Benefits. Frontiers in Physiology. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6510035/ 3. Healthdirect (2025). Rhabdomyolysis. https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/rhabdomyolysis 4. Schoenfeld BJ, Contreras BM (2013). Is Postexercise Muscle Soreness a Valid Indicator of Muscular Adaptations? Strength and Conditioning Journal. https://doi.org/10.1519/ssc.0b013e3182a61820 5. Leslie AW, Lanovaz JL, Andrushko JW, Farthing JP (2017). Flexibility training and the repeated-bout effect: priming interventions prior to eccentric training of the knee flexors. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism. https://doi.org/10.1139/apnm-2017-0093 6. Damas F, Phillips SM, Libardi CA, et al. (2016). Resistance training-induced changes in integrated myofibrillar protein synthesis are related to hypertrophy only after attenuation of muscle damage. The Journal of Physiology. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5023708/ 7. Dupuy O, Douzi W, Theurot D, Bosquet L, Dugué B (2018). An Evidence-Based Approach for Choosing Post-exercise Recovery Techniques to Reduce Markers of Muscle Damage, Soreness, Fatigue, and Inflammation: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis. Frontiers in Physiology. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5932411/ 8. Nahon RL, Lopes JSS, Monteiro de Magalhães Neto A (2021). Physical therapy interventions for the treatment of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS): Systematic review and meta-analysis. Physical Therapy in Sport. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptsp.2021.07.005 9. Davis HL, Alabed S, Chico TJA (2020). Effect of sports massage on performance and recovery: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7228568/ 10. Wiewelhove T, Döweling A, Schneider C, et al. (2019). A Meta-Analysis of the Effects of Foam Rolling on Performance and Recovery. Frontiers in Physiology. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2019.00376 11. Torres R, Pinho F, Duarte JA, Cabri JMH (2013). Effect of single bout versus repeated bouts of stretching on muscle recovery following eccentric exercise. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2013.01.002 12. Mitchell F, Henderson HJ, Gardner F (2018). Cluster of exertional rhabdomyolysis in three young women. BMJ Case Reports. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5926575/ --- Source: Twikka (https://twikka.com/learn/soreness-after-exercise). General information about physical activity, not medical advice.