You may have heard that lactic acid is the reason why your muscles feel achy, painful, or sore the day after an intense workout.
From taking a hot bath to doing deep stretches and drinking a lot of water, there are a number of recommended ways to flush out lactic acid buildup in your muscles. But what exactly is lactic acid and can you really blame it for muscle soreness?
We talked to experts about what you need to know and why it’s commonly misunderstood.
What is lactic acid?
“When we exercise, we tend to breathe faster to transfer more oxygen to the working muscles,” says Rebekah Miller, fitness expert and founder of Iron Fit Performance. “This is called aerobic exercise where we utilize oxygen adequately for energy. When we’re under a great amount of stress (e.g. high intensity interval training, sprinting, and/or lifting very heavy), we end up utilizing the anaerobic system to produce energy in our body. In the anaerobic state, our body produces a substance called lactate, which allows the breakdown of glucose (and thus, the production of energy) to continue. This lactate being produced brings us to the term: lactic acid.”
Does it really cause muscle soreness?
Many believe that a buildup of lactic acid is responsible for the day-after soreness you feel after a hard workout. The thinking goes, when lactic acid gets produced in the muscles, the muscles will become too acidic and will lose their ability to contract. Because of that, you get soreness and fatigue. But personal trainer, Carmen Demske says that’s actually just a common misconception. “Your muscles are not sore from lactic acid, they’re sore from the workout you gave them,” Demske says. “Inflammation and pain are your body’s response to hard work, and also the way the body lets you know it needs time to rest and rebuild.”
In fact, a study published in The Physician and Sportsmedicine tested a group of volunteers to see if there was actually a connection between lactic acid and muscle soreness. Volunteers were told to run on a treadmill for 45 minutes while researchers measured their levels of lactic acid before, during, and after their run. Researchers also checked again 72 hours later. While the volunteers felt the sorest right after their run, their lactic acid levels were at the lowest.
What does lactic acid actually do?
“Lactate is actually a really cool way the body makes sure it can power through some intense workouts,” says Martha L. Lawder, registered dietician and sports nutritionist. Fuel preferences can change within muscle tissue depending on the type of exercise. For instance, when you’re doing something slowly, the muscles have time to break down glucose for energy. But when exercise is more intense, the body needs some quicker fuel while it’s breaking down the glucose. That’s where lactate comes into play.
So there you have it. Lactic acid isn’t actually responsible for making your muscles sore, but if you are experiencing any soreness, it’s important to drink plenty of water, stretch, massage your muscles, and get quality rest.
xx, The FabFitFunTeam
Now that you’re up to speed on lactic acid, here’s why you should shower right after a workout.
