Don't Miss Out On A Sunny Run Because You're Too Sore

Don't miss out on a sunny run because of muscle soreness. Read how to flush out lactic acid from your muscles so you can get back to training

Don't Miss Out On A Sunny Run Because You're Too Sore

Don't Miss Out On A Sunny Run Because You're Too Sore

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Time to Read

3.5 minutes

Points of Interest

  • Understanding the problem
  • Reducing lactic acid in the muscles
  • Implications for athletes
  • Solving the issue

The reality of life as an athlete is that you're likely to spend a significant amount of time in some kind of exercise-induced discomfort.

If you're an athlete who creates a significant amount of lactic acid through your training or sport, you'll be all too familiar with this feeling!

Lactic acid certainly does contribute to a post-exercise drop in performance. There are however things you can do to help clear the post-exercise build up of lactate in the muscles, meaning you won't have to miss out on a sunny run because of sore muscles!

Understanding the Lactate Problem

It's helpful at this point if we establish exactly what lactate is. Knowing where it comes from gives us strategies to help clear it quickly and get back to intense training and peak performance sooner.

Lactate is a by-product of anaerobic respiration. In periods of high-intensity exercise, ATP (Adenosine Tri Phosphate) is manufactured by breaking down carbohydrate molecules in the body. This produces something called Pyruvate.

Pyruvate is turned into lactate when there isn't enough oxygen present within the body to turn it into ATP (energy). Once there is a build up of lactate, it is sent elsewhere in the body.

During prolonged periods of high intensity exercise, lactate levels can build up, creating a more acidic environment in the body – this is what creates the ‘burning' sensation in muscles.

Reducing Lactic Acid in the Muscles

Traditionally post-exercise recovery sessions were very low intensity, but further research has shown that when it comes to lactate clearance, higher intensities are more effective .

This seems to be clear in all sports. Tests have been conducted in cycling, rowing, running etc and the results all appear to be the same – working at 50% or more of maximal power output clears lactate quicker than lower intensity work.

There are two variables to consider in lactate clearance;

  1. How quickly the lactate is cleared.
  2. How much of the lactate is cleared.

The research again is very clear – at higher intensity post-exercise recovery sessions, lactate is cleared from the blood quicker, but also more completely.

Recovery sessions in runners completed at the lactate threshold resulted in the complete removal of blood lactate.

Implications for Athletes

This information should see a dramatic change in your recovery strategy.

If you have an old-school coach who insists on gentle recovery sessions, you may be at a disadvantage if you don't use a more practical lactate clearance protocol.

The research is enlightening for a couple of reasons…

  1. It gives recovery sessions direction – no more guesswork.
  2. Recovery will now be more effective.

Let's discuss these two in more detail.

Previously recovery sessions may have been conducted without any real goal.

"Work at a lower intensity" isn't great coaching as it's meaningless and at best is total guesswork.

Low intensity movement until you no longer feel stiff just doesn't cut it, because stiffness largely dissipates quickly. It doesn't effectively address the real issue though, which is clearing lactic acid.

The Solution

Thanks to this research, we can make post-activity lactate clearance more effective by giving athletes targets.

You should be looking to exercise at 80% of your maximum heart rate and above for around 20 minutes.

Good coaching advice would be to perform your particular activity at 80% or more of max heart rate for lactic acid recovery.

In practice, if you are a rower, for example, you should be rowing at 80% or more of max heart rate for 20 minutes, but no longer (other than a cool down).

The point is to work enough to flush out the lactic acid, but no more. Of course, we're all different, but a reasonable assumption could be made that you'll clear all or at least most of your lactic acid out of your muscles if you follow this protocol.

And Finally...

What about DOMS?

Lactic acid has been wrongly linked with creating DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness).

We know that lactic acid doesn't cause DOMS, but the activities you do will create lactic acid and that may be part of the process.

Wearing KYMIRA Sport's recovery-boosting sportswear has been proven to generate infrared, which speeds recovery by increasing circulation, muscle repair and toxin removal.

In either case, improving circulation has been shown to speed recovery, meaning you're more likely to be able to manage that sunny run after all!

Subscribe Today!

About the Author

Steve is a personal trainer and sports nutrition specialist

Further Reading

Performance, flexibility and the importance of recovery

Good hydration for great performance

Re-motivation for an active lifestyle

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Knowing where it comes from gives us strategies to help clear it quickly and get back to intense training and peak performance sooner.\nLactate is a by-product of anaerobic respiration. In periods of high-intensity exercise, ATP (Adenosine Tri Phosphate) is manufactured by breaking down carbohydrate molecules in the body. This produces something called Pyruvate.\nPyruvate is turned into lactate when there isn’t enough oxygen present within the body to turn it into ATP (energy). Once there is a build up of lactate, it is sent elsewhere in the body.\nDuring prolonged periods of high intensity exercise, lactate levels can build up, creating a more acidic environment in the body – this is what creates the ‘burning’ sensation in muscles.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nReducing Lactic Acid in the Muscles\nTraditionally post-exercise recovery sessions were very low intensity, but further research has shown that when it comes to lactate clearance, higher intensities are more effective.\nThis seems to be clear in all sports. Tests have been conducted in cycling, rowing, running etc and the results all appear to be the same – working at 50% or more of maximal power output clears lactate quicker than lower intensity work.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThere are two variables to consider in lactate clearance;\n\nHow quickly the lactate is cleared.\nHow much of the lactate is cleared.\n\n\nThe research again is very clear – at higher intensity post-exercise recovery sessions, lactate is cleared from the blood quicker, but also more completely.\nRecovery sessions in runners completed at the lactate threshold resulted in the complete removal of blood lactate.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nImplications for Athletes\nThis information should see a dramatic change in your recovery strategy.\nIf you have an old-school coach who insists on gentle recovery sessions, you may be at a disadvantage if you don’t use a more practical lactate clearance protocol.\nThe research is enlightening for a couple of reasons…\n\nIt gives recovery sessions direction – no more guesswork.\nRecovery will now be more effective.\n\n\nLet’s discuss these two in more detail.\nPreviously recovery sessions may have been conducted without any real goal.\n“Work at a lower intensity” isn’t great coaching as it’s meaningless and at best is total guesswork.\nLow intensity movement until you no longer feel stiff just doesn’t cut it, because stiffness largely dissipates quickly. It doesn’t effectively address the real issue though, which is clearing lactic acid.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe Solution\nThanks to this research, we can make post-activity lactate clearance more effective by giving athletes targets.\nYou should be looking to exercise at 80% of your maximum heart rate and above for around 20 minutes.\nGood coaching advice would be to perform your particular activity at 80% or more of max heart rate for lactic acid recovery.\nIn practice, if you are a rower, for example, you should be rowing at 80% or more of max heart rate for 20 minutes, but no longer (other than a cool down).\nThe point is to work enough to flush out the lactic acid, but no more. Of course, we’re all different, but a reasonable assumption could be made that you'll clear all or at least most of your lactic acid out of your muscles if you follow this protocol.\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAnd Finally...\nWhat about DOMS?\nLactic acid has been wrongly linked with creating DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness).\nWe know that lactic acid doesn’t cause DOMS, but the activities you do will create lactic acid and that may be part of the process.\nWearing KYMIRA Sport's recovery-boosting sportswear has been proven to generate infrared, which speeds recovery by increasing circulation, muscle repair and toxin removal.\nIn either case, improving circulation has been shown to speed recovery, meaning you’re more likely to be able to manage that sunny run after all!\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSubscribe Today!\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAbout the Author\nSteve is a personal trainer and sports nutrition specialist\n\n\n\n\n\n\nFurther Reading\nPerformance, flexibility and the importance of recovery\nGood hydration for great performance\nRe-motivation for an active lifestyle\n\n\n\n\n\n\n", "mainEntityOfPage": { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https:\/\/kymira.com" }, "headline": "Don't Miss Out On A Sunny Run Because You're Too Sore", "description": "Don't miss out on a sunny run because of muscle soreness. Read how to flush out lactic acid from your muscles so you can get back to training", "image": [ "https:\/\/kymira.com\/cdn\/shop\/articles\/unnamed_8e385a54-9e49-4596-88a9-4934adbf231e.jpg?v=1667507239\u0026width=500" ], "datePublished": "2019-06-03T15:09:11Z", "dateCreated": "2022-11-03T20:20:53Z", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Steve Hoyles, PT and nutrition specialist" }, "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "KYMIRA" } }