In a big chunk of the fitness industry, muscle soreness is a thing.
It’s a bit of a status upgrade to have sore hamstrings, sore quads, maybe an aching upper back from that big workout.
Coaches will even design workouts just to elicit this kind of thing. It can make them feel like it’s clear they’re providing value.
Unfortunately, muscle soreness itself has no relevance to a particular goal, unless your goal is to be sore.
Sure, soreness means you’ve done something, but whether that something is helpful is another conversation.
So, while “soreness” is arbitrary, doing work that’s aligned with your goals is not.
It’s the work that gets done in the direction you want to go that counts.
Getting a little sore, a little tired, or a little stressed once in a while is sometimes part of the process of creating change. A side effect.
But it’s important not to confuse the side effects with the goals.
