‘Exercise Pain Means Progress’–but Is It Harmful?

Get the facts and myths about exercise soreness and why pain isn’t always necessary.

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“No pain, no gain” is a phrase most of us have heard in gyms, sports, and fitness circles. The idea is simple: If your muscles ache, you must be making progress. However, pain isn’t always proof of improvement. Sometimes, it’s just your body adapting to new demands. Other times, it’s your body warning you to slow down. The challenge is knowing which kind of pain you’re feeling.

“It’s rarely a true ‘no pain, no gain’ situation,” Zach Smith, a doctor of physical therapy and founder of HIDEF Physical Therapy, told The Epoch Times. “Pain is like a smoke detector—it doesn’t always mean there’s a fire, but it does mean there could be one, and it deserves attention.”

Beyond Microtears

When you exercise, your body works harder than usual. Your heart pumps faster, your breathing deepens, and your muscles use more energy. In the moment, this can create a short-term burning or uncomfortable sensation, often caused by the buildup of byproducts such as lactate in the muscles, which usually fades once you stop or slow down.

The achy, stiff feeling that shows up a day or two later is called delayed onset muscle soreness. For years, this soreness was thought to be caused by tiny tears in the muscle fibers that the body repairs to build strength over time.

However, experts say soreness isn’t always about microtears.

In an interview with The Epoch Times, Jennifer Schwartz, a neuromuscular specialist and founder of Impact Your Fitness, said: “There aren’t many pain receptors deep in the muscle tissue itself. What you’re actually feeling is more about inflammation.”

After a challenging workout, your immune system kicks in, increasing blood flow and sending repair cells to the area. This immune response causes swelling, which puts pressure on the surrounding tissues and nerves. That’s what creates the classic soreness sensation.

Pain Is Personal

Not everyone feels exercise pain the same way, research shows. For some, a new workout brings only mild stiffness; for others, the soreness can drag on for days. In a long-term, population-based Norwegian study, researchers found that those who were consistently active had a higher tolerance for pain than those who stayed sedentary. Even people who became more active later in life showed improvements.

“Pain is a subjective experience, not a direct readout of tissue damage,” Schwartz said. “Two people can have the same workout, but one might feel a mild ache while the other feels sharp discomfort, depending on things like stress, sleep, and past injury.”

Good Pain

Many gymgoers describe three types of pain. The “good pain” often shows up as muscle soreness or a burning sensation during effort; it’s usually linked to growth and progress. The “bad pain” is sharp, sudden, or linked to injury, signaling that something is wrong and that you must stop the effort. Then there’s neutral pain, which people simply accept as part of training.

Research shows that not all pain during exercise is harmful. In a study of 68 people with knee osteoarthritis, those who felt a slight increase in pain while exercising were more likely to experience pain relief afterward. The findings suggest that mild discomfort can sometimes trigger the body’s natural pain-relieving responses, showing that pain doesn’t always mean damage.

For people already living with pain, a 2024 survey of more than 52,000 Japanese adults found that regular exercise helped ease pain by reducing negative emotions and increasing energy. The benefits grew with exercise frequency, regardless of whether the pain was in the back, neck, or knees, and older people seemed to benefit the most.

“If you’re moving forward at a good pace, you can expect some soreness, especially in the early stages of training,” Smith said. “Having soreness during exercise is certainly a sign of progress, but [it] is not the goal.”

Smith said that even though many people look for soreness and believe that they won’t see results without it, you can make progress even without feeling sore. This is especially true for people who have been training for a while and whose bodies are already adapted to that kind of stress.

Normal Soreness Versus ‘Bad’ Pain

The most common pattern is when people start a new exercise, feel sore the next day, and assume that they’ve injured themselves.

“Any new movement can cause this,” Smith said.

For example, if you start training your hamstrings and haven’t done that before, it’s normal to feel sore. The same goes for the lower back; people often feel soreness there after lifting and mistake it for an injury, because any sensation in that area is assumed to be harmful. However, soreness in the lower back, like in any other muscle, can simply mean that those muscles were worked and are adapting.

Normal soreness is usually diffuse; you can’t pinpoint it to one exact spot. It typically lasts up to 72 hours, peaking at about 48. Unlike an injury, you won’t feel it during the exercise itself; it tends to show up the next day or even two days later, Smith said.

In contrast, pain that might signal injury is often sharper, more pinpointed, and can show up suddenly during exercise or persist without improving. It might also present with swelling, bruising, or a loss of function.

“If the pain feels different from normal soreness—especially if it gets worse, lasts longer, or limits your movement—it’s best to ease up and check in with a health care professional,” Schwartz said.

Minimize Discomfort

In part, the belief that “progress requires pain” persists because people often associate soreness with results. Pushing through tough workouts can feel rewarding. However, you can get the same exercise benefits without overdoing it.

A systematic review of 18 studies in healthy adults ages 18 to 65 found that very hard, prolonged training may raise the risk of injury or chronic inflammation. On the other hand, moderate exercise, or intense workouts with sufficient rest, can improve health without the same risks.

Experts recommend the following tips to help you train smarter and stay healthy:

• Start Slowly and Build Gradually: Don’t jump in too aggressively. Find a safe entry point and scale up over time. A good rule is no more than a 10 percent to 20 percent increase in volume, intensity, or resistance per week.
• Try Cold Water: A quick ice bath after a tough workout can ease soreness and make it easier to stay consistent.
• Work in Isometrics: Holds such as planks or wall sits challenge your muscles without stressing your joints—perfect if you’re easing back in or still a little sore.
• Support Lymphatic Flow: Your lymphatic system relies on movement and gentle stimulation to clear out the metabolic waste created during exercise. Simple practices such as dry brushing, light self-massage, or breathwork can help keep lymph fluid moving, and infrared sauna sessions may also support circulation and recovery.
• Back Off if Something Hurts: Progress should be steady, not marked by sharp or lingering pain.

With a new understanding of pain and recovery, it’s important to update our beliefs, according to Schwartz.

“You can get stronger and healthier without suffering through every workout,“ she said. ”In fact, respecting your limits and focusing on recovery will usually get you further in the long run.”