Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is a feeling of discomfort in the muscles that you experience a day or two after doing intense, usually unfamiliar, exercise.

“DOMS is just an inflammatory response to the micro tears you’re causing in your muscles when training,” Shirvani explains. “Although you may feel like you might want to rest if you are experiencing DOMS, I would advise some light exercise or active recovery.”

This could look like a light cycle, swim or brisk walk in zone 2, at around 65-70% effort, Shirvani advises.“The research shows that active recovery or light exercise stimulation may aid in recovery as it will increase blood flow, improve your range of motion and leave you feeling slightly less sore.

“If you are experiencing intense pains from DOMS, I wouldn’t advise going into the gym and smashing a heavy strength training session or isolating the same muscle groups that you’re experiencing DOMS in.” You might feel fine, however, to strength train a different muscle group.

Is it OK to strength train 2 days in a row, or should you space out your workouts?