Another question for the Margaret Richard fans - her brand of DOMS?

[Pat58]

I've got to preface this question by saying, I've been working out for many years. In my young days I did gym workouts and lifted heavy free weights 4 to 5 days weekly and also did step classes and high impact aerobic videos at home.

Let's just say I'm no stranger to DOMS! But those workouts have long gone by the wayside and in my boomer years I focus on barre/fusion, yoga, Pilates and occasional low impact workouts. I use weight machines or light weight videos, nothing like the old days.

Since using Margaret Richard's videos on a regular basis, I have a different kind of DOMS than the heavy weights days. It's like a constant humming or burning, not limited to one muscle group but either the entire upper body or entire lower body - every little muscle fiber. It fades, and then I'll do something like going up a set of stairs, or doing a low impact cardio video, or reaching overhead for an object, and a flood of burning suddenly wells up in my muscles! I did a low impact cardio the other night and had to stop and walk it off several times from the intense burning.

Is this normal? I call it "Margaret muscles," it's as if she gives you a different class of DOMS and you never know when it's going to zing you. I am interested in any and all feedback!

[MsThistlebottom]

Yes, I've experienced "Margaret muscles" as well! I'm doing heavy lifting at a gym right now, but I swear I've gotten worse DOMS (especially biceps and triceps) from Margaret workouts. Not sure what it is--the higher reps?

[luvcritters]

It affects the entire upper body? Or lower body? That doesn't sound like DOMS.

The DOMS from MR has to do with lactic acid buildup but that's about all I know.

Maybe heavier lifting with less reps is better for your body.

Obviously I have no clue.

[Jane P.]

I've been doing LM Pump until recently. After the first few workouts, I would not get DOMS, but I would get a feeling of fatigue in the muscles the next day. It was particularly noticeable if I walked around a lot such as in a supermarket or big box store.

Then I switched to heavier weights and fewer reps, and now have DOMS again, but not that feeling of fatigue. This tells me that my muscles react differently to various types of workouts.

I think it's the same for you. Margaret muscles is your body's reaction to high rep workouts. You might throw in a week or two or heavier weights just to see if your muscles react differently.

[Pat58]

Thank you for the feedback everyone - different perspectives all around!

Perhaps I have simply just let myself get abysmally out of shape and that is why all of my muscles are talking at once.

[Vintage VFer]

Originally Posted by Pat58

Perhaps I have simply just let myself get abysmally out of shape and that is why all of my muscles are talking at once.

Margaret kills you softly with a smile.

If I don't do one of her workouts for a while, I really feel it the next day. Especially my triceps for some reason.

[Sophie]

Originally Posted by luvcritters

The DOMS from MR has to do with lactic acid buildup but that's about all I know.

Not lactic acid buildup. Nice explanation here:
Reduce-Lactic-Acid-Build-up-in-Muscles

Pat, I'm not familiar with Margaret but I get a similar feeling from high rep workouts like Tonique. It's very different ime from higher weight, lower rep DOMS. It's more fatigue to the bone

I think it's because those type of workouts are more taxing to your muscle fuel reserves, and recruit different fibre types because they emphasize muscular endurance over muscular strength.

That said, the intense burning you describe is something I have not experienced. Do you actually flush and experience overall heat in the body?

[MARIKA]

I remember doing her PBS show before VCR Holy Crap she would kill me.My quads I remember especially.

[Pat58]

Sophie, that's a great explanation, thank you! No, I don't get a whole body flush, like a hot flash, it's just this odd phenomenon that I feel as if I'm all "over" a workout a few days later, then I'll do something like squat to open a low file drawer, or do a cardio workout, and all of a sudden all the soreness floods back - as if it was dormant.

I've had a few more thoughts on it, too. MR gives you a thorough workout, working all the muscles in a group - back, front, each side. The DOMS is through the entire area, say from waist through thighs. I haven't used her in a while, I went to the gym on Saturday. Yesterday and today I only have DOMS in my hamstrings and quads from the lower body workout - not that full body feeling. And the soreness is more in the tendons than in the bellies of the muscles.

Maybe that's it - the high rep/light weight really gets those muscle fibers twitching without taxing the tendons and ligaments?

PS that was a good article - nice to know the difference between lactic acid burning during the workout and the delayed soreness later on, is the tear and repair process.

[Diana3271]

All of this is very interesting. This month I switched over from doing a little heavier weights to Jari Love, specifically her Get Ripped 1000. I have been doing it every other day, alternating with cardio. My muscles have gotten sore, like usual, but they also having a feeling of complete fatigue. Not sure what it is or if it's similar to what you have.