EXERCISE SORENESS
Q: If a part of my body hurts after exercise and I didn't exercise that part, have I done the exercise wrong or am I suppose to feel that way? For instance, my back hurts when I've been exercising my legs.
A: When you first begin an exercise program, especially if you've been fairly inactive, you may have some minor muscle soreness. This shouldn't last more than two or three days. Even muscles you don't think you're using may be sore, because they're being used to stabilize one part of your body while another part moves.
"Soreness" is to be distinguished from "pain." If you're having "pain" with a particular exercise or in a particular area after exercising, you may have been exercising too strenuously for your fitness level or perhaps you've been exercising in the wrong way. This is why good posture and body alignment are so important in exercise. If the body is not in proper alignment, the muscles may be pulling in an inefficient direction, and other muscles might possibly become strained.
