Muscles not sore

[Bluebell66]

I joined the gym in May and have been going regularly since doing a mixture of cardio, machines and free weights. Sometimes I feel sore afterwards but often I don't. Does this mean I'm not doing any good if I don't feel sore? I often feel like I'm wasting my time and it gets a bit disheartening. TIA

[AssassinatedBeauty]

This may be a silly question but have you upped the intensity/weights etc since May?

[Bluebell66]

Yes I have, my progress has been fairly good, not massive, but steady.

[Bluebell66]

Should I maybe up the weight but do fewer reps?

[Cakedoesntjudge]

Back when I used to see a PT he said you should aim to do the maximum weight you could do for 10 reps (and it should feel like a struggle towards 10) and do three sets of that for each exercise, rather than aim for lots of reps at a lower weight - hope that helps!

[Bluebell66]

Thanks very much Cake, that sounds like very good advice, I'll try it!

[JustGettingStarted]

Muscle soreness (DOMS) have nothing to do with progress. You'll maybe feel them when you do something new. But it's normal to not feel them even after a heavy workout where you have gone up in weight to a new personal best.

[Bluebell66]

Thanks so much for that Just - very reassuring.