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DOMS: What Really Causes It, and How to Recover Smarter
Soreness That Teaches You Something
The other week I walked into a climbing gym for the first time. As someone who spends a lot of time dedicated to weightlifting, calisthenics and a decent amount of grip training, I thought my grip and pulling power would carry me. It did but didn’t. I was able to complete most of the beginner levels with ease and was able to complete one V4 climb. Honestly, I am not quite sure if that is good or not, but hey, it felt pretty hard to do and took my over 10 tries;I had to complete it or I wouldn’t have been satisfied. Two days later my forearms, upper back, and glute medius were on fire with a soreness I hadn’t felt in a long time.
That experience reminded me of something we forget in the gym; soreness isn’t the enemy, and it isn’t the badge of honor we make it out to be. It’s information. It shows us the blind spots in our training: the muscles, stabilizers, and connective tissue that normal routines don’t hit.
What DOMS Actually Is (and Isn’t)
DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) sets in hours after activity, peaks one to three days later, and can last nearly a week. It can arise from all types of contractions: concentric (shortening), eccentric (lengthening), and even isometric (holding).
The difference is in severity and likelihood:
Concentric work often produces metabolic fatigue (burn, pump) but rarely deep, lasting soreness.
Isometric work (like gripping a climbing hold) creates high local fatigue and can contribute to DOMS when prolonged.
Eccentric contractions remain the biggest culprit, because lengthening under load places the most strain on muscle fibers and connective tissue.
That’s why bouldering or rock climbing, which constantly cycles between pulling up (concentric), locking off (isometric), and lowering or slipping under control (eccentric), creates a cocktail of stress that lights up the forearms, back, and stabilizers for days afterward.
The old “muscle-only” view falls short.
The Fascia Connection
A newer explanation shifts focus to fascia: the connective tissue wrapping and linking muscles. Why fascia?
It’s loaded with pain receptors (more than muscle fibers themselves).
Eccentric contractions place shearing forces directly into fascial layers.
Imaging studies show fascial thickening and swelling after eccentric exercise, correlating with soreness.
Injections of saline or inflammatory agents into fascia cause sharper, longer-lasting pain than injections into muscle.
In other words, DOMS may be less about “muscle damage” and more about delayed onset soft-tissue stiffness (DOSS) driven by fascial irritation and inflammation.
Grounding: An Unconventional Angle
Another emerging area of recovery research looks at grounding, the practice of making direct contact with the earth to restore the body’s natural electrical balance. In everyday life this can mean walking barefoot outside, swimming in natural water, or lying on the ground.
In a controlled pilot study, researchers tested a more specific method: using conductive patches and bed sheets connected to the earth. Compared to the sham group that was not grounded, the grounded participants showed:
Lower creatine kinase, a marker of muscle damage
Better Pi/PCr ratios, reflecting more efficient energy metabolism
Less soreness on both subjective pain ratings and objective pressure tests
While small in scale, the study suggested that reconnecting with the earth, whether directly or through conductive systems, may help reduce inflammation, improve recovery markers, and shorten soreness duration.
Everyday Ways to Ground
Go barefoot: Walk on grass, soil, or sand for 20–30 minutes.
Swim in natural water: Lakes, rivers, or the ocean provide strong grounding effects.
Train outdoors: Pushups, stretching, or yoga on the ground adds both grounding and movement benefits.
Rest directly on the earth: Sit, lie down, or meditate outside without synthetic barriers like rubber soles or plastic mats.
Recovery Techniques That Are Based On Science
The largest systematic review to date (99 studies) compared the most common post-exercise recovery methods. Here’s the scoreboard:
Massage → Most effective overall. Reduces DOMS up to 96h, lowers fatigue, decreases CK and IL-6 (markers of muscle damage/inflammation).
Cold water immersion (≤15°C) → Small but real benefit for DOMS and inflammation. Works best for legs and whole-body immersion.
Compression garments → Moderate effects on soreness and fatigue, especially when worn continuously for 24h post-training.
Active recovery → Helps with DOMS in the short term, mainly through blood flow.
Contrast water therapy → Small benefit for DOMS, less so for fatigue.
Cryotherapy → Only effective when used immediately (<6h post-exercise), not at 24h+.
Stretching/electrostimulation → Minimal to no effect on DOMS.
Bottom line: massage, immersion, and compression are your biggest levers.
How to Apply This to Training
Rotate modalities: Don’t rely on ice baths alone. Combine massage, compression, or active recovery depending on context.
Support fascia: Use foam rolling, collagen/gelatin supplementation, and multidirectional mobility to condition connective tissue.
Respect timing: Some methods (cryotherapy, active recovery) only work if applied immediately. Others (compression, massage) extend their benefits for days.
Experiment with novel inputs: If grounding interests you, treat it as an add-on rather than a core strategy, the science is early, but promising.
Reframe soreness: Don’t chase it, don’t fear it. Use it as feedback to program smarter and identify weak links.
Final Word
The soreness after climbing wasn’t “muscle damage” to brag about, rather it was fascia telling me I’d pushed it into new territory. DOMS isn’t proof you had a great session, nor is it something to avoid at all costs. It’s a signal.
The athletes who win long-term don’t ignore soreness and they don’t glorify it. They interpret it, recover intelligently, and get back to work stronger than before.
I hope you’ve learned something,
Joshua