No more pain...

Fri, Aug  10, 2007 - By Mike Muha

Through most of this spring and summer, I've been running sporadically at best - maybe a run every couple of weeks. And every time I ran, I'd be sore for days after.

With my decision to do a couple triathlons, I increased my running frequency and - guess what! - no more pain.

I should have known better.

If you're coming off one sport and getting ready to get on your rollerskis, or start weight training, or begin ski walking, plan on being sore the first few times you go out. But don't let it get you down - the soreness will go away with frequency of exercise.

Weight training always kills me when I start out after a long delay. No matter how easy the first session, I'm sore for days. But after three or four sessions, the soreness lessens. After a month, I never get sore. Instead, my muscles get pleasantly tired.

And how about you? Kids, work and family been keeping you busy? No exercise whatsoever? Still planning on skiing this winter? Get out for some short workouts - a half and hour here, a half an hour there. You'll be sore, but the more frequently you get, the sooner the soreness disappears. A single big session once a week is going go be much more painful.

The key? Frequency. Your body gets used to something if you do it two of three times a week. It adapts and expects the stress. If you wait too long between similar exercise, your body loses any adaptation, and you have to start all over again.