DOMS is a normal response that your body has when your muscles have worked harder than they are used to. It typically occurs one or two days after the exercise, and can last for up to five days – with the intensity of pain and discomfort varying.

That aching happens when the body is challenged in a new way – whether that’s by increasing the volume, dialing up the intensity or increasing the duration of training. You’ll probably get DOMS too if you try a totally new workout or sport that requires your muscles to be used in ways that they haven’t yet adapted to.

When that happens, your muscles get minute tears. Then the body’s defence system – the inflammatory response – rushes to the site and starts the repair process which produces the symptoms of DOMS – discomfort, swelling or inflammation, and temporary loss of muscle strength.

Physiotherapist Kate Mockford tells Stylist: “It is important to remember that DOMS isn’t a negative factor of exercise but actually a very important one; the adaptation process that your muscles are undergoing will eventually lead to better muscular strength and endurance. They have to break down a little in order to repair and build up stronger than they were previously.”

With that in mind, it’s worth mentioning that any attempts to alleviate DOMS should only be focussed on making day-to-day living more bearable (like walking down the stairs) and not an attempt to prevent the inflammatory response itself. So, here’s how I got on with trialling the five most common pain-reducing techniques.

Post-workout muscle pain:“I tried 5 common techniques to reduce DOMS and here’s what really works”