Is It Normal to Be Sore After Pilates? What Soreness Means and What to Do
Updated: Oct 6
By Katherine, Lead Instructor, Certified Pilates Instructor
Yes. Mild muscle soreness after Pilates is normal, especially after a new exercise or a harder session. It is called delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS): it typically starts one to three days after exercise and usually settles within a few days, rarely lasting more than five (Cleveland Clinic). Sharp, joint-related or worsening pain is different and is a reason to stop and get advice.
Key takeaways
Dull, achy, tender-to-the-touch muscles one to three days after a session are the typical pattern of DOMS, and it is common after a new type of exercise.
Soreness is a normal result of trying something new. It is not proof of harm.
Sharp pain, joint pain, pain that spreads, numbness or tingling, severe swelling, dark urine, or soreness that lasts beyond about a week are not normal soreness and need attention.
Light movement is usually fine while you are sore. Save hard work for the sore muscles until they settle.
Most recovery options (gentle movement, fluids, massage, heat or cold) are low-risk comfort measures, and the evidence for them is modest.
What is delayed onset muscle soreness?
DOMS is muscle pain that appears after exercise your body is not used to. The usual explanation is that the work creates tiny tears in muscle fibres, which sets off a normal repair process (Cleveland Clinic). It is called "delayed" because it develops gradually over the hours and days after your session.
Pilates is a strength practice as well as a mobility practice, so it is not surprising that it can cause DOMS, particularly if you are new to the Pilates method or have moved up to a more demanding session.
How long does soreness after Pilates last?
For most people the timeline looks like this:
Day of the session: fatigue or a "worked" feeling, but usually no real soreness yet.
Days 1 to 3: soreness starts and builds gradually.
By about day 5: it has usually eased or gone. Soreness rarely lasts longer than five days (Cleveland Clinic).
Soreness also tends to fade with repetition. After a first bout of unaccustomed exercise, muscles adapt in ways that reduce soreness and damage from a similar session later, a protective response known as the repeated bout effect. The mechanisms behind it are still not fully understood (Hyldahl, Chen & Nosaka, 2017). If you are heading into your first session, our guide to your first Pilates class covers what to expect on the day.
Where will you feel it, and why?
DOMS is most closely linked with eccentric exercise, where a muscle is working while it is being stretched under load, such as lowering a weight, walking downhill or lunging (Cleveland Clinic). Pilates often asks for exactly this kind of slow, controlled work: resisting a spring as it pulls you back, or lowering a leg or your upper body under control rather than letting it drop.
So soreness shows up wherever you worked hardest in ways your body is not used to. Depending on the session, that can include the abdominals, glutes, hamstrings, inner thighs, shoulders and upper back, and it varies from person to person.
Is soreness normal, or a sign something is wrong?
Normal soreness feels like a dull ache or tenderness across a muscle, often with some stiffness when you first move. It tends to build over the first day or two and then improves day by day.
You may have heard that "if you feel it, you're doing it wrong." No study we found tests that slogan, and building strength involves effort, fatigue and sometimes soreness. What matters is the type of sensation, not whether there is one.
Pain that is not typical soreness includes:
Sharp, stabbing or pinching pain during an exercise, especially at a joint
Pain that radiates down an arm or leg, or comes with numbness or tingling
Pain that gets worse from session to session instead of settling
Sharp and constant pain, or severe swelling around a muscle
Soreness lasting more than a week
Unusually dark or bloody-looking urine after hard exercise, which can signal a serious muscle injury and needs prompt medical care (MedlinePlus; Cleveland Clinic)
Safety note: This is general information, not medical advice. If you have any of the signs above, see your family doctor or a physiotherapist, and seek prompt medical care, or emergency care if you feel very unwell, for dark urine with severe muscle pain or swelling. If you have a back problem, see our guide to Pilates for lower back pain for how it differs from ordinary muscle soreness.
Should you train or rest when you are sore?
Rest is usually the main remedy for DOMS, but moving sore muscles in your everyday routine should be fine. What to avoid is intense exercise for the muscles that are sore, and you can work other muscle groups while they recover (Cleveland Clinic).
For Pilates, mild soreness does not have to mean skipping class, as long as the session goes easy on the sore muscles. Tell your instructor where you are tender. In our sessions we adapt exercises to you, so a lighter spring, a smaller range or a different focus for the day are normal adjustments. If the pain feels sharp rather than achy, rest and get it checked first. How many sessions suit your body each week is a separate question, covered in our weekly Pilates guide.
What helps recovery?
Most options are about comfort while the body repairs itself. Reasonable choices include:
Gentle movement. A short walk or easy stretching can help stiff, sore muscles (Cleveland Clinic).
Fluids. Staying hydrated supports recovery (Cleveland Clinic).
Heat or cold. Cold may ease pain and heat may ease stiffness, so use whichever feels better to you (Cleveland Clinic).
Massage or foam rolling. A 2017 meta-analysis of 11 randomized trials (504 participants) found massage reduced soreness ratings at 24, 48 and 72 hours, but the authors judged the quality of all the trials low, so treat it as a comfort measure rather than a proven fix (Guo et al., 2017). That review looked at massage, not foam rolling.
Over-the-counter pain relief. Pain relievers such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen can ease occasional soreness, but do not take them often, and see a health care provider if you find you need them regularly (Cleveland Clinic). If you have a health condition or take other medicines, check with a pharmacist first.
Soreness and your first sessions with us in Markham
If you are new to reformer work, a small group setting makes it easy to ask about the sensations you are noticing. Our Small Group Pilates Class is a reformer class with a maximum of 3 people and runs 55 minutes, and drop-ins are welcome. Your instructor can adjust the work if your muscles are tender from last time. We work alongside your health care provider where that is helpful. You can book a Small Group Pilates Class here.
Frequently asked questions
Why am I more sore on the second day than the first?
DOMS develops gradually and typically starts one to three days after exercise, so soreness that is stronger on day two than on the day itself is normal. It rarely lasts beyond about five days (Cleveland Clinic).
Do I have to be sore for Pilates to be working?
No. Soreness is one possible response to unfamiliar effort, and it tends to lessen as your body adapts (Hyldahl, Chen & Nosaka, 2017). Feeling less soreness, or none, after later sessions is common.
When should I stop and see a doctor?
See a health care provider if pain is sharp and constant, if there is severe swelling around a muscle, if your urine is unusually dark or has blood in it, or if soreness lasts longer than a week (Cleveland Clinic). Sharp pain during an exercise is also a reason to stop it. Dark urine after hard exercise should be assessed promptly (MedlinePlus).
Sources
Cleveland Clinic. Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/delayed-onset-muscle-soreness
Hyldahl RD, Chen TC, Nosaka K (2017). Mechanisms and mediators of the skeletal muscle repeated bout effect. Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews, 45(1), 24-33. https://doi.org/10.1249/JES.0000000000000095
Guo J, Li L, Gong Y, Zhu R, Xu J, Zou J, Chen X (2017). Massage Alleviates Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness after Strenuous Exercise: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Frontiers in Physiology, 8:747. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5623674/
MedlinePlus (US National Library of Medicine). Rhabdomyolysis. https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/000473.htm
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