During workouts you cause micro traumatic tears within the muscle which  leads to the muscle soreness from inflammation you feel the next day or maybe later that night. 

Think of when you did a hard leg workout.  The next day you found yourself reaching out for any sort of support as you sat down on the toilet or when walking up a flight of stairs seemed like a feat in itself or maybe you decided it would be best to take the escalator instead.

We’ve all experienced this sort of muscle soreness at some point.  It doesn’t have to be from working out – it could be from doing physical activity you haven’t done for awhile like hiking up Koko Head Crater. 

This pain is called delayed onset muscle soreness, also known as DOMS.  DOMS is part of the muscle building, recovery process, and your body’s way of adapting to a new stress.

Any form of high-intensity exercise can cause DOMS,  but the eccentric portion of exercise can be the main driver of this soreness.  During the eccentric phase of exercise, you create tension in the muscle while you also lengthen it.  This is when much of the micro tears in the muscle take place.

For example, lowering the weight down in a controlled manner during a biceps curl is an eccentric movement.  Or lowering down into a squat with a barbell.   Or when performing pushups and lowering yourself down towards the ground is an eccentric movement. Get the point?

By taking a holistic approach to your fitness by complimenting your workouts with the right diet, you can minimize the soreness you feel the next day to an extent.  

And remember, DOMS is not a sign of a good workout.  When you do a hard workout or push yourself beyond your limits – you will get sore.  But as you keep working out and staying active, your body will adapt.  This will cause you to feel less sore with each workout.  This does not mean you aren’t working out hard enough or not making any gains. 

The Best Foods to Help Muscle Soreness

‘Olena: Turmeric

‘Olena is also known as a ceremonial root in Hawai’i and used for various medicinal reasons, like its ability to decrease inflammation which causes muscle soreness.

A 2009 study found that in patients who had arthritis, turmeric was even able to help their pain just as much as ibuprofen. When we see the possibility of taking a natural route to combat pain, we’d rather begin there.

Curcumin is the main active compound in turmeric. According to research, in order to absorb Curcumin into the bloodstream you must consume black pepper, which contains piperine, with turmeric to improve absorption rate by 2,000%.

Read this: The Health Benefits and Cultural use of ‘Olena

Eggs

Eggs are great no matter what time of day it is, and not just the egg white. We like the whole egg. Eggs are packed with protein, the building block of muscles that not only helps with building but also repairing.

The Journal International Society of Sports Nutrition, found egg protein to increase protein synthesis after resistance training which could help with reducing DOMS. Eggs also have all nine essential amino acids we need, particularly a good amount of leucine, which as an amino acid directly linked to muscle recovery.

‘Ahi Poke or Fish

Not only do we like to visit our favorite poke bowl place after a hard workout because we are hungry, but it’s also a perfect meal to begin the muscle healing process.

Fish is a great food source to eat because of its anti-inflammatory component, omega-3 fatty acids. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine did a study on omega-3 consumption in athletes and suggests that it could be a great help for fighting against muscle soreness after exercise.

Coffee

That’s right. Coffee. This went along with one of our mottos at KU Body Club: caffeinate to dominate. But don’t just take our word for it. A research suggests a moderate dose of caffeine (about 2 cups of coffee or close to 190mg of caffeine) can decrease post-workout soreness by 48 percent

Another win for coffee.

Leafy Greens

While most people think of kale and spinach when it comes to leafy greens, we think of luau leaves to make laulau.

Leafy greens contain a bunch of nutrients like magnesium, calcium, and B vitamins to aid in muscle repair and overall wellbeing. Leafy greens also have antioxidants, which are well known to reduce inflammation and stress levels.

Last Minute Realization…

As we researched and went through our own list, we came to a realization that the list basically sounds like a visit to one of our favorite Hawaiian food restaurants, Helena’s Hawaiian Food for laulau or luau stew (leafy greens), lomi salmon or ‘ahi poke (fish), kalua pig (protein), and poi (carbs) for a complete muscle building and repairing meal.