Does massaging the muscle help relieve delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS)?











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After exercising, I begin to feel pain within my muscles which I've concluded as DOMS, so I wondered if I can massage the pain away. At some point I realised that the muscles just have to recover. But my question, does massaging help relieve the pain from DOMS in any way at all.










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    up vote
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    After exercising, I begin to feel pain within my muscles which I've concluded as DOMS, so I wondered if I can massage the pain away. At some point I realised that the muscles just have to recover. But my question, does massaging help relieve the pain from DOMS in any way at all.










    share|improve this question
























      up vote
      10
      down vote

      favorite









      up vote
      10
      down vote

      favorite











      After exercising, I begin to feel pain within my muscles which I've concluded as DOMS, so I wondered if I can massage the pain away. At some point I realised that the muscles just have to recover. But my question, does massaging help relieve the pain from DOMS in any way at all.










      share|improve this question













      After exercising, I begin to feel pain within my muscles which I've concluded as DOMS, so I wondered if I can massage the pain away. At some point I realised that the muscles just have to recover. But my question, does massaging help relieve the pain from DOMS in any way at all.







      exercise muscle-soreness doms






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      asked Nov 21 at 13:23









      Prince

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      1908






















          4 Answers
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          up vote
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          You hit on an important distinction between pain and recovery.



          Massage may very well make you feel less pain, but that does not mean it will improve your recovery.



          Many immediately jump to "At least it gets rid of the pain. I'm going to do it."



          There's a chance that backfires. Many associate pain with recovery. Less muscle soreness? "I'm more recovered." In fact, many (erroneously) equate how sore they are from a workout with how effective the workout was.



          If you get or give yourself a massage, which makes you feel better, then you may assume you're more recovered than you are, where you inadvertently do too much after the massage. Like push too hard in your next session, or you don't take enough time off before the next session.



          I like this one paper which hits on this:




          • Using Recovery Modalities between Training Sessions in Elite Athletes: Does it Help?


          Personally, with my personal training clients, I don't mind if they get a massage, but whenever a client says something like "Last workout was tough. I needed a good massage after it," I'm likely to be a little more cautious the following session.






          share|improve this answer





















          • Does DOMS increase your risk of an injury in subsequent sessions? I've never altered my training due to DOMS and the exercise usually makes it go away anyways.
            – TheLoneMilkMan
            Nov 21 at 19:08










          • Link to the paper here: wingate.org.il/_Uploads/17barnett-usingrecovery-2006.pdf
            – Parrotmaster
            Nov 22 at 7:35


















          up vote
          3
          down vote













          No, massaging a muscle has no effect the pain felt from damaged tissue or what is known as soreness. But it can momentarily increase pain tolerance, same with stretching. Many people think foam rolling or stretching does indeed decrease soreness but it only makes the muscle a little numb for a brief moment, thus giving that illusion of being beneficial.






          share|improve this answer








          New contributor




          Can is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
          Check out our Code of Conduct.

























            up vote
            2
            down vote













            Massaging and foam rolling are not identical, but are close enough that foam rolling is often labelled a form of "self-massage".



            Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.



            Massage appears to have tested benefits on DOMS pain, but not on improving muscle function recovery (these results seem to vary a bit between different results, but being conservative it would be best to assume no benefit to recovery).



            So to answer your question, yes, massage helps DOMS-related pain, but you should be cautious going back to work out, as your muscle is unlikely to have fully recovered.






            share|improve this answer










            New contributor




            mbrig is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.

























              up vote
              1
              down vote














              Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.




              The study used a subjective pain scale, so placebo was obviously a major factor in perceived pain, using subjective pain scales completely defeats the credibility of the study. Also the linked study literally states




              FR
              did not help in treating EIMD at the muscular level




              So biologically speaking Foam rolling did nothing to increase muscle recovery, it only reduced pain due placebo effect.






              share|improve this answer










              New contributor




              user29173 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
              Check out our Code of Conduct.


















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                4 Answers
                4






                active

                oldest

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                4 Answers
                4






                active

                oldest

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                active

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                active

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                up vote
                11
                down vote













                You hit on an important distinction between pain and recovery.



                Massage may very well make you feel less pain, but that does not mean it will improve your recovery.



                Many immediately jump to "At least it gets rid of the pain. I'm going to do it."



                There's a chance that backfires. Many associate pain with recovery. Less muscle soreness? "I'm more recovered." In fact, many (erroneously) equate how sore they are from a workout with how effective the workout was.



                If you get or give yourself a massage, which makes you feel better, then you may assume you're more recovered than you are, where you inadvertently do too much after the massage. Like push too hard in your next session, or you don't take enough time off before the next session.



                I like this one paper which hits on this:




                • Using Recovery Modalities between Training Sessions in Elite Athletes: Does it Help?


                Personally, with my personal training clients, I don't mind if they get a massage, but whenever a client says something like "Last workout was tough. I needed a good massage after it," I'm likely to be a little more cautious the following session.






                share|improve this answer





















                • Does DOMS increase your risk of an injury in subsequent sessions? I've never altered my training due to DOMS and the exercise usually makes it go away anyways.
                  – TheLoneMilkMan
                  Nov 21 at 19:08










                • Link to the paper here: wingate.org.il/_Uploads/17barnett-usingrecovery-2006.pdf
                  – Parrotmaster
                  Nov 22 at 7:35















                up vote
                11
                down vote













                You hit on an important distinction between pain and recovery.



                Massage may very well make you feel less pain, but that does not mean it will improve your recovery.



                Many immediately jump to "At least it gets rid of the pain. I'm going to do it."



                There's a chance that backfires. Many associate pain with recovery. Less muscle soreness? "I'm more recovered." In fact, many (erroneously) equate how sore they are from a workout with how effective the workout was.



                If you get or give yourself a massage, which makes you feel better, then you may assume you're more recovered than you are, where you inadvertently do too much after the massage. Like push too hard in your next session, or you don't take enough time off before the next session.



                I like this one paper which hits on this:




                • Using Recovery Modalities between Training Sessions in Elite Athletes: Does it Help?


                Personally, with my personal training clients, I don't mind if they get a massage, but whenever a client says something like "Last workout was tough. I needed a good massage after it," I'm likely to be a little more cautious the following session.






                share|improve this answer





















                • Does DOMS increase your risk of an injury in subsequent sessions? I've never altered my training due to DOMS and the exercise usually makes it go away anyways.
                  – TheLoneMilkMan
                  Nov 21 at 19:08










                • Link to the paper here: wingate.org.il/_Uploads/17barnett-usingrecovery-2006.pdf
                  – Parrotmaster
                  Nov 22 at 7:35













                up vote
                11
                down vote










                up vote
                11
                down vote









                You hit on an important distinction between pain and recovery.



                Massage may very well make you feel less pain, but that does not mean it will improve your recovery.



                Many immediately jump to "At least it gets rid of the pain. I'm going to do it."



                There's a chance that backfires. Many associate pain with recovery. Less muscle soreness? "I'm more recovered." In fact, many (erroneously) equate how sore they are from a workout with how effective the workout was.



                If you get or give yourself a massage, which makes you feel better, then you may assume you're more recovered than you are, where you inadvertently do too much after the massage. Like push too hard in your next session, or you don't take enough time off before the next session.



                I like this one paper which hits on this:




                • Using Recovery Modalities between Training Sessions in Elite Athletes: Does it Help?


                Personally, with my personal training clients, I don't mind if they get a massage, but whenever a client says something like "Last workout was tough. I needed a good massage after it," I'm likely to be a little more cautious the following session.






                share|improve this answer












                You hit on an important distinction between pain and recovery.



                Massage may very well make you feel less pain, but that does not mean it will improve your recovery.



                Many immediately jump to "At least it gets rid of the pain. I'm going to do it."



                There's a chance that backfires. Many associate pain with recovery. Less muscle soreness? "I'm more recovered." In fact, many (erroneously) equate how sore they are from a workout with how effective the workout was.



                If you get or give yourself a massage, which makes you feel better, then you may assume you're more recovered than you are, where you inadvertently do too much after the massage. Like push too hard in your next session, or you don't take enough time off before the next session.



                I like this one paper which hits on this:




                • Using Recovery Modalities between Training Sessions in Elite Athletes: Does it Help?


                Personally, with my personal training clients, I don't mind if they get a massage, but whenever a client says something like "Last workout was tough. I needed a good massage after it," I'm likely to be a little more cautious the following session.







                share|improve this answer












                share|improve this answer



                share|improve this answer










                answered Nov 21 at 13:53









                Brian Reddy

                1,032210




                1,032210












                • Does DOMS increase your risk of an injury in subsequent sessions? I've never altered my training due to DOMS and the exercise usually makes it go away anyways.
                  – TheLoneMilkMan
                  Nov 21 at 19:08










                • Link to the paper here: wingate.org.il/_Uploads/17barnett-usingrecovery-2006.pdf
                  – Parrotmaster
                  Nov 22 at 7:35


















                • Does DOMS increase your risk of an injury in subsequent sessions? I've never altered my training due to DOMS and the exercise usually makes it go away anyways.
                  – TheLoneMilkMan
                  Nov 21 at 19:08










                • Link to the paper here: wingate.org.il/_Uploads/17barnett-usingrecovery-2006.pdf
                  – Parrotmaster
                  Nov 22 at 7:35
















                Does DOMS increase your risk of an injury in subsequent sessions? I've never altered my training due to DOMS and the exercise usually makes it go away anyways.
                – TheLoneMilkMan
                Nov 21 at 19:08




                Does DOMS increase your risk of an injury in subsequent sessions? I've never altered my training due to DOMS and the exercise usually makes it go away anyways.
                – TheLoneMilkMan
                Nov 21 at 19:08












                Link to the paper here: wingate.org.il/_Uploads/17barnett-usingrecovery-2006.pdf
                – Parrotmaster
                Nov 22 at 7:35




                Link to the paper here: wingate.org.il/_Uploads/17barnett-usingrecovery-2006.pdf
                – Parrotmaster
                Nov 22 at 7:35










                up vote
                3
                down vote













                No, massaging a muscle has no effect the pain felt from damaged tissue or what is known as soreness. But it can momentarily increase pain tolerance, same with stretching. Many people think foam rolling or stretching does indeed decrease soreness but it only makes the muscle a little numb for a brief moment, thus giving that illusion of being beneficial.






                share|improve this answer








                New contributor




                Can is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                Check out our Code of Conduct.






















                  up vote
                  3
                  down vote













                  No, massaging a muscle has no effect the pain felt from damaged tissue or what is known as soreness. But it can momentarily increase pain tolerance, same with stretching. Many people think foam rolling or stretching does indeed decrease soreness but it only makes the muscle a little numb for a brief moment, thus giving that illusion of being beneficial.






                  share|improve this answer








                  New contributor




                  Can is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.




















                    up vote
                    3
                    down vote










                    up vote
                    3
                    down vote









                    No, massaging a muscle has no effect the pain felt from damaged tissue or what is known as soreness. But it can momentarily increase pain tolerance, same with stretching. Many people think foam rolling or stretching does indeed decrease soreness but it only makes the muscle a little numb for a brief moment, thus giving that illusion of being beneficial.






                    share|improve this answer








                    New contributor




                    Can is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.









                    No, massaging a muscle has no effect the pain felt from damaged tissue or what is known as soreness. But it can momentarily increase pain tolerance, same with stretching. Many people think foam rolling or stretching does indeed decrease soreness but it only makes the muscle a little numb for a brief moment, thus giving that illusion of being beneficial.







                    share|improve this answer








                    New contributor




                    Can is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.









                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer






                    New contributor




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                    answered Nov 21 at 13:46









                    Can

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                    1




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                    New contributor





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                        up vote
                        2
                        down vote













                        Massaging and foam rolling are not identical, but are close enough that foam rolling is often labelled a form of "self-massage".



                        Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.



                        Massage appears to have tested benefits on DOMS pain, but not on improving muscle function recovery (these results seem to vary a bit between different results, but being conservative it would be best to assume no benefit to recovery).



                        So to answer your question, yes, massage helps DOMS-related pain, but you should be cautious going back to work out, as your muscle is unlikely to have fully recovered.






                        share|improve this answer










                        New contributor




                        mbrig is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                        Check out our Code of Conduct.






















                          up vote
                          2
                          down vote













                          Massaging and foam rolling are not identical, but are close enough that foam rolling is often labelled a form of "self-massage".



                          Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.



                          Massage appears to have tested benefits on DOMS pain, but not on improving muscle function recovery (these results seem to vary a bit between different results, but being conservative it would be best to assume no benefit to recovery).



                          So to answer your question, yes, massage helps DOMS-related pain, but you should be cautious going back to work out, as your muscle is unlikely to have fully recovered.






                          share|improve this answer










                          New contributor




                          mbrig is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                          Check out our Code of Conduct.




















                            up vote
                            2
                            down vote










                            up vote
                            2
                            down vote









                            Massaging and foam rolling are not identical, but are close enough that foam rolling is often labelled a form of "self-massage".



                            Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.



                            Massage appears to have tested benefits on DOMS pain, but not on improving muscle function recovery (these results seem to vary a bit between different results, but being conservative it would be best to assume no benefit to recovery).



                            So to answer your question, yes, massage helps DOMS-related pain, but you should be cautious going back to work out, as your muscle is unlikely to have fully recovered.






                            share|improve this answer










                            New contributor




                            mbrig is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                            Check out our Code of Conduct.









                            Massaging and foam rolling are not identical, but are close enough that foam rolling is often labelled a form of "self-massage".



                            Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.



                            Massage appears to have tested benefits on DOMS pain, but not on improving muscle function recovery (these results seem to vary a bit between different results, but being conservative it would be best to assume no benefit to recovery).



                            So to answer your question, yes, massage helps DOMS-related pain, but you should be cautious going back to work out, as your muscle is unlikely to have fully recovered.







                            share|improve this answer










                            New contributor




                            mbrig is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                            Check out our Code of Conduct.









                            share|improve this answer



                            share|improve this answer








                            edited Nov 22 at 4:28





















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                            answered Nov 21 at 17:46









                            mbrig

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                            New contributor





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                                up vote
                                1
                                down vote














                                Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.




                                The study used a subjective pain scale, so placebo was obviously a major factor in perceived pain, using subjective pain scales completely defeats the credibility of the study. Also the linked study literally states




                                FR
                                did not help in treating EIMD at the muscular level




                                So biologically speaking Foam rolling did nothing to increase muscle recovery, it only reduced pain due placebo effect.






                                share|improve this answer










                                New contributor




                                user29173 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                Check out our Code of Conduct.






















                                  up vote
                                  1
                                  down vote














                                  Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.




                                  The study used a subjective pain scale, so placebo was obviously a major factor in perceived pain, using subjective pain scales completely defeats the credibility of the study. Also the linked study literally states




                                  FR
                                  did not help in treating EIMD at the muscular level




                                  So biologically speaking Foam rolling did nothing to increase muscle recovery, it only reduced pain due placebo effect.






                                  share|improve this answer










                                  New contributor




                                  user29173 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                  Check out our Code of Conduct.




















                                    up vote
                                    1
                                    down vote










                                    up vote
                                    1
                                    down vote










                                    Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.




                                    The study used a subjective pain scale, so placebo was obviously a major factor in perceived pain, using subjective pain scales completely defeats the credibility of the study. Also the linked study literally states




                                    FR
                                    did not help in treating EIMD at the muscular level




                                    So biologically speaking Foam rolling did nothing to increase muscle recovery, it only reduced pain due placebo effect.






                                    share|improve this answer










                                    New contributor




                                    user29173 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                    Check out our Code of Conduct.










                                    Foam rolling has clinically proven benefits on DOMS-related pain and connective tissue related recovery.




                                    The study used a subjective pain scale, so placebo was obviously a major factor in perceived pain, using subjective pain scales completely defeats the credibility of the study. Also the linked study literally states




                                    FR
                                    did not help in treating EIMD at the muscular level




                                    So biologically speaking Foam rolling did nothing to increase muscle recovery, it only reduced pain due placebo effect.







                                    share|improve this answer










                                    New contributor




                                    user29173 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                    Check out our Code of Conduct.









                                    share|improve this answer



                                    share|improve this answer








                                    edited Nov 22 at 21:45





















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                                    answered Nov 22 at 21:39









                                    user29173

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