How long does lactic acid build up last

In fact, some experts believe it can be beneficial. In small amounts, lactic acid can:. However, many people find that the muscle pain and cramps from lactic acid buildup negatively affects their workouts. Keeping the body hydrated during exercise gives it the best chance of breaking down any excess lactic acid. People can ensure they stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water. The body starts to produce lactic acid when it is low in the oxygen necessary to convert glucose into energy.

Breathing deeply will help deliver oxygen to the muscles, thereby slowing the production of lactic acid. When a person feels the effects of lactic acid buildup, they can slow down and reduce the intensity of their workout. This will allow blood oxygen levels to recover. Lightly stretching the muscles after a workout can help to alleviate any burning sensations or cramps that lactic acid buildup may cause. In most cases, lactic acid buildup is a harmless response to strenuous exercise and will go away on its own.

Once the body has used the resulting lactate for energy, the liver breaks down any excess in the blood. For a long time, experts thought that lactic acid was responsible for delayed onset muscle soreness DOMS following exercise. However, experts no longer believe this is the case. Instead, they now say that DOMS pain and stiffness is the result of microscopic damage to muscle fibers. Certain health conditions can lower blood oxygen levels, resulting in increased lactate production.

These conditions include:. This can result in high blood lactate levels, which doctors call hyperlactatemia. In some cases, hyperlactatemia can progress to lactic acidosis. This alteration can result in severe health complications. Lactic acidosis is also a rare side effect of some HIV medications. Anyone who thinks they have lactic acidosis or nonexercise-induced hyperlactatemia should speak to a doctor straightaway.

A doctor will usually carry out a blood test to check levels of lactate in the blood. In some cases, they may ask the person not to eat, drink, or exercise for several hours before the test. There's not much evidence that warming up will be effective in preventing DOMS. But exercising with warmed-up muscles will reduce your chance of injury and improve your performance. While stretching has many benefits, there's currently no evidence stretching before or after exercise helps reduce or prevent DOMS.

You can exercise with DOMS, although it may feel uncomfortable to begin with. The soreness should go away once your muscles have warmed up. The soreness will mostly likely return after exercising once your muscles have cooled down. If you find it hard to exercise, you could rest until the soreness goes away.

Alternatively, you could focus on exercises targeting less affected muscles to allow the most affected muscle groups time to recover. DOMS is a type of muscle conditioning, which means your muscles are adapting to the new activity. The next time you perform the same activity or exercise at the same intensity, there'll be less muscle tissue damage, less soreness, and a faster recovery.

Page last reviewed: 3 February Next review due: 3 February Why do I feel pain after exercise? Benefits of exercise Why we should sit less Physical activity guidelines: children under 5s Physical activity guidelines: children and young people Physical activity guidelines: adults Physical activity guidelines: older adults Exercise as you get older.

How to stretch after a run Knee exercises for runners Knee pain and other running injuries. Safe exercising Get active with a disability Fitness advice for wheelchair users Why do I feel pain after exercise?

Lower back pain exercises Exercises for sciatica Exercises for sciatica problems Common posture mistakes and fixes. In other words, the muscle is actively contracting, attempting to shorten its length, but it is failing. These eccentric contractions have been shown to result in more muscle cell damage than is seen with typical concentric contractions, in which a muscle successfully shortens during contraction against a load.

Thus, exercises that involve many eccentric contractions, such as downhill running, will result in the most severe DOMS, even without any noticeable burning sensations in the muscles during the event.

Given that delayed-onset muscle soreness in response to extreme exercise is so common, exercise physiologists are actively researching the potential role for anti-inflammatory drugs and other supplements in the prevention and treatment of such muscle soreness, but no conclusive recommendations are currently available.

Although anti-inflammatory drugs do appear to reduce the muscle soreness—a good thing—they may slow the ability of the muscle to repair the damage, which may have negative consequences for muscle function in the weeks following the strenuous event. Already a subscriber? Sign in. Thanks for reading Scientific American. Create your free account or Sign in to continue. See Subscription Options.

Go Paperless with Digital. Get smart. Sign up for our email newsletter.