will i ever not be sore?!!?

[respectred]

ok this is a real pain. how come the day after every single kung fu class i'm ALWAYS sore? am i like the only person who is always sore from the day befores MA class? it's been like this for a year and a half since i started, and i don't think i'm stretching wrong or anything, i stretch just fine and i usually never have any pains while doing so. i always try to get myself to practice the next day but it's a pain when i'm mad sore from the day before. what might cause this? maybe i'm just "naturally tense" or something!? i dunno, but it sucks!

any suggestions appreciated!

[ged]

try drinking more water/eating more protein, i think both assist in muscle recovery.

[dbulmer]

Oh boy this sounds so familiar!

Apart from the advice given about fluids, how about taking a break from training? To give your body a chance to repair itself!

Do you warm up before you start your training and cool down after your training?

It sounds to me as if you might be overdoing it.

[fa_jing]

YOGA. Move the lactic acid out of your muscles, without too much additional strain for the weary.

-FJ

[respectred]

thanks for the replies!

are fluids really that important!? if so, i'll drink water like crazy! how much is recommended daily?

also, i train about 3x a week in class, and usually 2x out of class, so 5x a week basically...and yeah, in the beginning of class we usually do some running which gets your nice and warmed up, then we go straight to stretching.
sometimes i get in class early though and i have nothing to do, so i stretch a bit (nothing major at all, but still a tiny bit...) completely cold. is that a really bad idea? i don't really feel that much pain when i do a real light cold stretch, i just try to ease into everything a little bit more...but if that's not recommended AT ALL, then i'll definitely stop that and twiddle my thumbs or something instead.

and cooling down...what kind of cooling down? usually we do some quick conditioning stuff at the dead end of class, and sit in meditation for a minute or two. would that small bit of meditation count as cooling down? what are other ways of cooling down?

and about yoga, that's a good idea, but i barely even have time for kung fu! 3x a week!

anyway, thanks again and sorry for the long post .

-matt

[Lightning Vortex Seiryu go]

first maybe you should't try so hard, try to practice every other day and at the same time and place in the day if possible,

and second try not to practice when upset or angry, because some bad things might happen or you might get undesireable side effects also don't train if you got somthing big on your mind or some kind of life crisis, if you are going through somthing like that clear your mind then continue with your practices for best results.

and lastly yes drink more water, breath and all that stuff, then warm up your muscles by doing some warm ups and then streach, I think that you'll find my advise helpfull, tell me what ya think...

[respectred]

hey

it's so hard not to try hard and not practice all that i do! i'm sure you and everybody else knows how i feel hehe, we've all had injuries which made us not be able to train so we all know it's horrible, but when it's not even an injury, it's even horrible-er!!!

anyway, i just might take your advice on that, so hard though, i love kung fu.

thanks for the advice!

-matt

[IronFist]

Getting sore after a workout is not good. What if you get in a fight that day? If you're sore, you won't be in optimal condition.

As for the water, bodybuilders drink a gallon or so per day. If you're drinking this much, or even almost this much, you don't have anything to worry about. If you're not drinking this much, and desire to do so, build up to it SLOWLY. Otherwise you will be peeing every 5 minutes. But, even half a gallon is sufficient. (the 8 glasses that is recommended by doctors or whatever is half a gallon, for reference.)

For protein, for building muscle, 1g per pound of bodyweight per day is plenty. So if you're getting this much, you're fine.

You could just be over doing it. How long are your classes? How long do you train for? Maybe you need to reduce it a bit and build back up.

Just suggestions.

IronFist

[dbulmer]

At the end of the session, try some relaxed stretching. You should not need to feel any pain - just stretch enough so that you can feel it.

I think the biggest tip you'd profit from is: rest between your workouts for a while. If you still feel a need for exercise between sessions , stretch for 10 minutes or so in the morning before breakfast and early in the evening but don't overdo it.

If you are training 3 times a week in a vigourous manner that should be enough - anymore I suspect is getting you overtired at your current fitness level.

[fa_jing]

Remeber to warm up BEFORE you stretch. 100 jumping jacks should do it.

-FJ

[dbulmer]

Jumping jacks arrrrrrrrrrgh ! Not my idea of a warm up - too much stress ! Skipping rope, shadow boxing even a little dance to some music will raise your temperature plus you don't risk injury by doing it.

There are people who caution against jumping jacks believing it causes too much stress on your back and lower joints.

For WC, we do joint rotations from head to toe and then start the session with practice of technique, followed by some repetiive spar drills leading up to pad work and then free spar. ie we get progressively warmer as we lead up to a free spar. I guess for some other MAs you need to be a bit warmer but just the thought of doing jumping jacks makes me shudder.

And hello fellow WC man! Don't take my post as threat/challenge/criticism because it is not intended as that

[rael]

Massage is the way! The best way to get latic acid
out of your body is massage! As a Massage therapist I work on all kinds of athlete's if your sore take a break and get a massage, you muscles will thank you.

Rael

[Lightning Vortex Seiryu go]

all you people are so cool, anyway the true essance of life come pouring out like a huge water fall.

I love it




p.s. train all you want 2,3,4,5,... hours a day all day

just remember to rest your self to develope strength

and to ultimatly set a repititious habit for yourself

it will pay off. trust me...

[fa_jing]

Actually, I started doing jumping jacks cause I was bored with jumping rope. To avoid injury, just stay on your toes, don't come down on you heels. Same as jumping rope.

I think that if I'm stretching close to my max, as opposed to light stretching as part of a warmup, I need to be really warm and breathing hard before I do this. so, 100 jumping jacks, three minutes of jumping rope, two minutes of deep horse stance, any ofl these things are enough to get me going without getting tired. Even more can be better. Usually I warm up, stretch, work out, then stretch again.

-FJ

[mortal]

I was sore the whole first year. I had trouble walking the next day. I felt like I was a hundred years old at times. NEVER stretch cold. I see people do it all the time. Always warm up first. I warm up by throwing some slow stretch kicks.
Then I try to kiss my toes and kick again a little harder and higher. Depending on your age 3 times a week training might be enough, especially if it is hard training.
I still get sore but it doesn't hurt the way it did in the begining. Now I kind of like it. Always stay loose, never be rigid or stiff. It definitly contributes to your soreness. If you stretch when your sore it helps alot. I always feel better after stretching.