My Legs Are Killing Me…But I Want To Go Back For More

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My legs are killing me, yet I keep going back for more. Image courtesy of duron123 and FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

My legs are killing me, yet I keep going back for more. Image courtesy of duron123 and FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

Well for the 2nd straight week my glutes, quads and hamstring are killing me. I went a little crazy in my Tuesday spin class and decided to really challenge myself. I upped my resistance level between 10-17. Normally I keep it between 6-12. Yikes!

Sure I got a great workout, but I’m paying the price. Walking isn’t fun. Standing is painfully slow. And don’t get me started on trying to sit down.

I followed up Tuesday’s spin class with a killer lower body workout on Wednesday. I explained to my trainer I was sore. She showed no mercy on me.

Yesterday I planned to take it easy in my cycling class – moderate resistance and speed. That didn’t happen. The class focused on strength building. That means high resistance. Again, I found myself at that 10-17 level. The first 5 minutes of class were excruciating. But my legs warmed up and felt great…until I hit the wall about 25 minutes later. My legs turned to jello. I stood for the rest of the class, using my body weight to help with the pedaling. Finishing class was a struggle. On the bright side, I burned 700 calories. Sure I couldn’t walk, but I burned half of my daily calories. Ugh!

So here it is Friday, and I can’t wait to hit my yoga class for some maximum stretching. Yet, as I spy my gym’s class schedule, I notice the spin class about an hour before yoga. Hmmmm….

What the heck is wrong with me?

I’m Sore Today…Time To Workout!

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stretchning and muscle soreness

Moderate stretching and exercise on the menu today to combat muscle soreness post backpacking trip. Image courtesy of photostock and FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

I’m sore. My legs feel like lead and my hips stiff.  I jumped into a workout (backpacking) that I haven’t done for a while. Sure I walked about 4 days a week for the last couple of weeks and did yoga everyday. It still didn’t prepare my muscles for the big hike this weekend.

The soreness started Sunday morning, before the hike back. Breaking down camp and some stretching (and a couple of Ibuprofen) seemed to help loosen up my legs.

Today the soreness is back with abandon. I’m expecting the soreness to last about 48 hours before it eases its kung fu death grip on me.

The old me would give in to the pain and rest my body for a few days. Of course the old me also weighed 325 lbs. Sure I’d rest after a tough workout. But getting me to workout again was next to impossible. Why on earth would I want to feel more pain. It seemed that anytime I lifted a finger, I got sore the next day and needed to rest. My workouts were always stop and go, stop and go. So why bother.

I didn’t…and my waistline paid the price.

As I said, that was the old me. My plan now is to take it easy for a couple of days. But that doesn’t mean no exercise. On tap today – light stretching and a 1 mile walk. Tomorrow I go for a swim.  I might add in some resistance band training too, but using the bands with less tension than normal.

I’ve read that exercise may help reduce the lactic acids associated with sore muscles. It certainly helps pump more oxygen and blood to muscles.  I know that my body feel better with moderate exercise and the overall pain and stiffness seems to go away much quicker.

Plus, I need to get my legs ready for a 5K on Saturday.