Note: The following was something that I posted to another site and I’m reposting here. Why? Two reasons: I’m letting you know about my life and I’m lazy.

I work out at least twice a week with my trainer, Amy. What I’ve noticed is that after finishing our session of controlled torture I feel fine. During the next two days, however, whatever body part we’ve worked on feels really stiff and sore. I remember when I worked out with Jonah and he put me through the paces. It was, to say the least, quite an experience. My legs burned with each step I took. I could barely lift my arms the next few days following.

This made taking a crap quite a painful and adventurous activity.

But what the heck was going on? I had no clue whatsoever whether or not this was good or bad for me. So I did some really quick internet research. From the Daily Muscle:

4 hours to 48 hours after a hard workout, most people begin to experience soreness in the body parts trained. This is called Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, or DOMS.

DOMS is caused by tiny microscopic tears that occur in the muscle as a result of high intensity exercise (such as weight training, intense cycling, etc). After the workout, the muscle begins to rebuild itself (provided it is allowed enough time and nutrients to recover). This is the rebuilding process which creates new muscle that is bigger and stronger than before. In other words, your muscles are growing. Your muscles grow when you are at rest – not when you’re at the gym.

So my muscles grow when I’m at rest. Hell, it is the NFL Play-offs. I should be pretty friggin’ ripped by the beginning of February considering the amount of time I could spend resting on the couch. Wouldn’t you know it – some of the solutions that are around the Intarwebs for dealing with DOMS consist of:

…use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (such as ibuprofen) and ice packs or even ice baths to help reduce the inflammation.

Which I’m not too sure I want to do. I got myself into this so I feel that I should accept my fate for what it is. Hopefully, my fate won’t be bigger and fatter than what I currently am.