should i be this sore after personal training?

on monday i went to a 30min personal training session and she focused on my legs as we did weights machines and step ups and squats. felt fine that day, the next day i was so sore i could barely walk and had trouble getting up and down. the next day was worse and then the following day felt better but still had twinges.

yesterday i had another 30 min session but focussed on the upper body and arms. again felt fine during the session and that night. last night about 3am i woke up because my arm near my elbow was killing me! had trouble sleeping and got up about 6am. it is kinda puffy and is really sore. i cant bend my arm and lift it up to do my hair! its ridiculous! i am having trouble picking bub up and such. the other arm is sore too but i can still use it to do everyday things!

now my first question is.. should i ice it or heat pack it?

second -- i know i am pretty unfit but is this something i should expect from a personal training session or do i have a crappy trainer?

third- i have one more session booked in for monday and i dont want to go if i am gonna have so much pain afterwards which affects my ability to look after the kids! should i go or should i ask her to 'go easy on me' LOL

it got me thinking about the biggest loser actually.. they must pull up sooo sore after their first training session.. i wonder how many days in between they are allowed to go before the next session!

i'm no expert but i have always found that after training sessions/playing sport after a break that i am always a bit sore the day after but that the second day is worse. then i usually find on the 3rd day that i'm back to normal. that might last for the first two or three times but after that i don't get sore (unless training new muscles etc)

i've had times where i've been really sore so that walking up & down stairs is painful etc but i've never had a time where i've had swelling. i'd always ice while there's swelling & leave a heat pack for later - but you might want to wait for a more qualified person than me!

are you doing any cardio to warm up or down from the session? i knew one personal trainer who would swear by a simple walk after a session to help with recovery.

i don't know if you have a crappy trainer :lol: but i know i used to get sore sometimes, but nowhere near the extent that it was stopping me from day to day activities, iykwim?

anyway, hope someone with more experience is along soon to help!

Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness.

Google search it. It usual to start to feel the aches some days after beginning or changing exercise like this.

I was like you when I started. The days afterwards were very, very bad. Very, very sore.

It wasn't my trainer - it was me. My body wasn't used to exercising like that. It took me about a fortnight and then it stopped being so sore afterwards.

However it was worth it. My fitness improved out of sight, I was so much stronger and had so much more energy.

My trainer always said there is a difference between soreness and pain. Sharp pain (except for a stitch) means something is wrong. Soreness just means your body is working hard.

I know it sucks now - try and stick with it.

My personal trainer says if you're not sore the day after then you didn't work hard enough lol! Apparently sore muscles indicate that you're burning lots of calories as your muscles have to repair themselves (or something like that).

Good luck hun, I know it's hard but try to stick with it. I would probably mention it to your trainer so he/she knows though.

In terms of soreness I usually go with the RICE (Rest Ice Compresion Elevation) theory.

I work with a personal trainer 2-3 times a week and have been for the last 8 months, initially I was so sore I could hardly get on or off the toilet, I remember many days of doing free fall onto the toilet seat from great heights. It is slightly better now, however I still have days where I have done a new excercise or pushed myself really hard that I have some soreness the next few days, it doesnt usually hurt as much though, and it doesnt last as long.

Make sure you are doing good warm ups and lots of stretching afterwards, we usually do a good 10-15mins warm up before each session and stretch all of the muscle groups afterwards that we have worked on, each stretch should be held for a min of 30 secs.

Good luck, keep it up, it does get easier and the benefits of it are fantastic, I have lost about 12 kgs, dropped a combined 50 cms for my waist and my hips alone, and dropped 2 dress sizes.

hehehehe i am doing the same sort of thing as you and the afte the first time i was in so much pain but it only lasted a few days. yesterday was my 2nd time and i was sore but not as much as the first time.
but pain is ment to be good.
no pain no gain lol