Can you get stronger without getting sore?
Here's a question/comment that we have received so many times, we finally decided to make a blog post about it. Many clients or friends will ask us, do you still get sore every time you train? Or, they make comments on how no matter how hard they may work a particular body part they just can't seem to get as sore as they used too. So, the questions are: if you're not getting sore are you getting stronger? Why aren't you getting sore? Do you have to be sore to build muscle?
"I never get sore..."
This isn't a statement regarding myself- rather a statement we've heard 100 times over. This is more than likely a result of the dreaded "routine" disease which we've gone over in almost every blog post on our website. HOWEVER, if you don't know what this is...it's basically when you do the same exact lifting/exercise routine which inevitably leads you to land on a plateau larger than the Tibetan plateau. (It's the largest plateau in the world, yes I had to Google it).
But, basically this means your body is used to all the stimulation you've given it and your routine is going to stop producing results or produce them at a snails pace.
Not being sore is definitely a sign of being used to your routine. If you are going weeks on end without feeling sore something is definitely up with your programming. New stimulus and muscle confusion should be your bread and butter for results. If you're not mixing up your workouts with different exercises, weight, sets, reps or some other variation etc. you have a shitty program... it's that simple.
So, are you sore after every single workout??
Absolutely not...for how often we train to be honest we can't afford to be sore after each workout. Some people will disagree here, saying we should redo our program to incorporate more rest which would allow us to be sore after every workout but, with no offense given, we don't really care. We've been doing this for a long time and we see results in the areas we are looking to improve.
If I could nail it down to a percentage, I'd say I'm sore after about 50% of my workouts. Now, because we train 6-7 days a week this is partially on purpose. We like to keep some of our "bodybuilding" style days short and sweet to conserve some energy for our tougher power and functional days.
How do I get sore again?
This shouldn't be difficult for anyone at all really. This is extremely simple. Mix up your routine and keep mixing it up. I'll tell you right now that in our program we will never do the same exercises on back to back training days. Meaning if I do 3x15 bench on Monday and train chest again Friday...I'm going to be doing 5x5, incline, banded bench, or no bench at all. Point here is your body needs NEW stimulus to get sore and to confuse the muscle.
For some, it won't even be that complicated. Never done deadlifts before? Try them on your next leg/back day and I can guarantee you'll have trouble sitting for a few days. Always do machine chest exercises? Throw some free weights in the mix and you'll be looking like a T-rex the next day. Always use the Smith-Machine? Just stop doing that...forever.
Yes, you CAN get better without getting sore...
I think it's ridiculous that there is a percentage of people who think if you aren't sore, there is absolutely no way you're getting stronger. Sure, you could argue that if you aren't sore you may not be getting results at the same rate as you would if you were sore. But to say there is zero gain from a workout that doesn't make you sore is absolutely false.
When I was much younger and much less educated on how to write programs I got stuck (relatively) in routines and I 100% kept getting stronger throughout that period of time. If I can workout chest for two hours of straight exercises with minimal rest and wake up the next day and not feel sore, I refuse to believe that I got nothing out of it. A more educated and experienced me would've known that I could've gotten much stronger in a shorter time period through a more diverse program BUT you live and you learn.
With that being said...you need to be realistic with the results you are getting. If your program doesn't make you sore and you feel that you are building muscle and getting stronger at a decently quick pace AND your program isn't going to put you in a plateau DON'T CHANGE ANYTHING. The bottom line is every single person is different and when you find something that works you should run with it full force. If you aren't getting sore and feel like you haven't seen results in the fashion that you want...mix up your program, get sore and get off the plateau you're most likely in.