Exercise Intensity

The Best and Worst Ways to Measure a Workout

Sore muscles, target heart rate, calorie burn, and more. Our expert sounds off on the legitimate and not-so-legitimate ways we assess a workout well done
By Emily G. W. Chau fitbie
 

How Sore You Feel

No pain, no gain, right? While it's ludicrous to believe that you can torch a significant number of calories without building up a sweat, it's equally absurd to gauge your workout by how bad you feel at the end of it. "Of course you need to overload your muscles to see strength gains, and you should have some muscle soreness," says Matthews. "But if you can't move the next day, or feel overall more zapped than energized, you may have an acute case of overtraining." Severe discomfort, poor sleep, and crankiness are all signs of overtraining and can actually lead to decreased performance and coordination in the gym.

3 Comments
More From fitbie
Keywords:
Related Content