What does the research say about delayed onset muscle soreness?

Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is the muscle pain, tenderness, and stiffness that develops after unaccustomed eccentric exercise and typically peaks between 24 and 72 hours post-exercise. It is distinguished from acute muscle soreness, which is felt during or immediately after exercise. DOMS is not a disease and is not caused by lactic acid; the dominant proposed mechanisms involve mechanical disruption of muscle fibres, followed by an inflammatory response, oxidative stress, and sensitisation of nociceptors. The research literature on DOMS is largely conducted in healthy human volunteers, most commonly in soccer players, untrained adults, and recreational athletes.

The work centres on the oxidative-stress and inflammatory pathways that follow eccentric exercise, including reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, antioxidant enzyme activity (such as superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase), and the gut–muscle axis. Interventions studied for DOMS include allicin, melatonin, magnesium, sodium pyruvate, and purple grape-derived products [1][2].

Research Studies

Allicin and DOMS, muscle function, and oxidative stress after eccentric exercise

Allicin, a sulfur-containing compound derived from garlic, has been studied as a pretreatment for DOMS in a registered clinical trial. The trial was designed to investigate the effects of allicin pretreatment on delayed onset muscle soreness, muscle function, and oxidative stress following eccentric exercise [2]. The study population and outcomes are defined by the trial protocol; no results are reported in the evidence block.

Melatonin and recovery in soccer players

A qualitative research synthesis of mechanism-based nutritional strategies for performance and recovery in soccer players reviewed melatonin among other interventions. The synthesis reported that melatonin was considered for its potential to support recovery processes in soccer players, a population characterised by intermittent high-intensity exercise, metabolic load, and oxidative stress [1]. The evidence is synthesised at the review level and does not provide a single effect size.

Magnesium and recovery in soccer players

The same qualitative synthesis reviewed magnesium as a nutritional strategy for performance and recovery in soccer players [1]. Magnesium is discussed in the context of metabolic load and recovery disruption in that population. The synthesis does not report a specific DOMS outcome for magnesium.

Sodium pyruvate and recovery in soccer players

Sodium pyruvate was included in the qualitative synthesis of nutritional strategies for soccer players [1]. The review considered it among multi-target supplements that may support performance and recovery. No DOMS-specific effect was reported in the evidence block.

Purple grape-derived products and recovery in soccer players

Purple grape-derived products, which contain polyphenols, were reviewed in the same qualitative synthesis for their potential role in performance and recovery in soccer players [1]. The synthesis frames these products within oxidative stress and recovery processes. No specific DOMS outcome is reported in the evidence block.

Gut-axis interventions (prebiotics, probiotics, synbiotics) and recovery in soccer players

The qualitative synthesis also covered gut-axis interventions, including prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics, as strategies for performance and recovery in soccer players [1]. These interventions are discussed in relation to the gut–muscle axis and recovery processes. The evidence block does not report a DOMS-specific effect for these interventions.

Comparison of interventions reviewed for recovery in soccer players

The table below summarises the interventions named in the qualitative synthesis and the clinical trial, and the population in which each was studied. It does not imply efficacy; it reflects the scope of the evidence block.

Limits of the evidence

The evidence block does not include animal-only or in vitro studies for DOMS. The qualitative synthesis is a review of human soccer players [1], and the allicin study is a registered clinical trial protocol in humans [2]. No animal or cell-culture data are reported in the evidence block for these interventions in DOMS.

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Sources

• [1] Mechanism-based nutritional strategies for performance and recovery in soccer players: a qualitative research synthesis
• [2] Effects of Allicin Pretreatment on Anti-oxidation Ability and Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness