Shivering and chills that occur after exercise can be both normal and a warning sign
Muscle soreness is one of those bodily signals that can be surprisingly telling. You go for a brisk run after a long break, add a few extra squats, or try a new type of exercise—and the next day, the stairs become a small personal challenge. Although it is often talked about almost jokingly, muscle soreness has clear associations, typical manifestations, and also boundaries that should not be crossed. Sometimes, an unpleasant feeling that people associate more with a cold, such as chills, can also mix in. Is it still a "normal" post-exercise reaction or a warning?
What is muscle soreness and how does it manifest
Most people think of muscle soreness as muscle pain after exercise, but it is actually more about delayed onset muscle soreness (often referred to by the English acronym DOMS). Typically, it does not appear immediately. On the contrary, you might feel surprisingly fine after a workout, and only after 12 to 24 hours do you start noticing that something is not quite right. The peak discomfort often occurs between 24 and 72 hours.
How does muscle soreness manifest in practice? Most commonly as muscle tenderness to touch, stiffness, pain during movement, and a feeling of "heavy" limbs. Sometimes there is a slight limitation in the range of motion—for example, you can't comfortably raise your arm above your head or have trouble doing a deeper squat. It's also typical that the pain is more pronounced during movements where the muscle is working in elongation (such as walking down stairs, where the thigh muscles are braking the movement).
Symptoms of muscle soreness can vary depending on the type of load the body has been subjected to, how trained a person is, how they slept and ate, and whether it was a new movement or unusual intensity. In general, muscle soreness is associated with small microscopic changes in the muscle tissue and the subsequent reaction of the body, which is part of the adaptation process. It's not about "lactic acid," as is often believed—that is broken down relatively quickly after exertion. The delayed pain comes later and has a different background.
In real life, it might look like this: on Monday, someone finally decides to attend a yoga class focused on the core after a long time. During the exercise, it's challenging but manageable. On Tuesday morning, nothing too dramatic happens, just a slight fatigue. It’s only in the afternoon when lifting a shopping bag or laughing at dinner that the abdominal muscles remind you that the "core" really exists. By Wednesday, just standing up from a chair feels like learning a new movement pattern. This is the typical course.
And what about chills? These can appear after sports for several reasons and should not be overlooked. Short-term shivering and a feeling of cold can be related to exhaustion, a drop in blood sugar levels, cooling down after sweating, or the body's "switching" back to rest mode after intense exertion. However, if the chills are pronounced, recurring, accompanied by fever, general malaise, or headache, it's time to be alert—it could be the onset of an infection or an overload that is no longer just a normal muscle reaction.
"Pain after exercise can be normal, but sharp pain, fever, or significant fatigue are not."
For basic orientation, it's useful to know that ordinary muscle soreness usually improves with light movement and resolves within a few days. Conversely, a problem that worsens, is unilateral, stabbing, or accompanied by systemic symptoms (fever, chills, nausea) deserves more attention.
How long does muscle soreness last and when to be alert
The question of how long muscle soreness lasts is among the most common, as the pain can be unpleasant and sometimes practically limiting. For most people, it resolves within 3 to 5 days. With a stronger load or a completely new type of movement, it can last up to 7 days, but this is more of an exception—and often relates to the body receiving too large a dose of work suddenly.
Duration is influenced by several common factors. When someone sleeps little, is stressed, eats chaotically, and drinks little, the body regenerates more slowly. Similarly, if another strenuous activity is added immediately after a demanding workout without rest. Interestingly, people who exercise regularly may perceive muscle soreness less intensely—not because it "doesn't work," but because the body adapts and reacts more calmly to similar stress.
But it's fair to say that there are situations where it’s not just ordinary muscle soreness. It's advisable to be alert when any of these signals appear: the pain is sharp and stabbing, concentrated in one area (such as a joint), there is significant swelling, a bruise without a clear cause, numbness, weakness, or if fever is added. In combination with this, chills can be an important warning that the body is not just dealing with a local muscle reaction.
Particular attention should also be paid to a condition where the urine is dark (brownish) and the person is overall very weak after extreme exertion. This is not typical muscle soreness, but a situation that requires medical examination—not to scare unnecessarily, but because the body sometimes knows how to indicate that limits have been exceeded.
However, if we stick to the usual scenario: mild to moderate muscle pain, stiffness, tenderness, and slightly limited movement—that's classic. And even though it sounds paradoxical, it often helps not to completely stop moving, but rather to gently keep moving.
For a reliable explanation of what's happening in the body, you can refer to overviews and recommendations from respected health institutions, such as the American Mayo Clinic (on the topic of delayed muscle soreness and safe exercise in general): https://www.mayoclinic.org/ or the British NHS (on general principles of safe movement and recovery): https://www.nhs.uk/. The point is not to search for diagnoses online, but to understand principles that are repeated across sources.
How to help yourself with muscle soreness for smart recovery
When the question arises how to help with muscle soreness, most people want a quick solution. Miracles usually don't work—however, simple things that come together well do. The basic principle is to support circulation, relieve stiffness, and give the body the material and time for recovery.
Most often, light movement helps. Not another hard workout, but calm walking, gentle stretching, relaxation exercises, or a leisurely bike ride. It's a bit counterintuitive because you have the urge to "take it easy," but complete immobilization often worsens stiffness. Light movement improves circulation and provides subjective relief. Similarly, a warm shower or bath can help, or alternating warmth and cold—not as an obligation, but as a choice depending on what feels good.
Sleep is greatly underestimated. Recovery doesn't just happen in the muscles but throughout the system. Sometimes, two nights of quality sleep are enough to shift muscle soreness from "ouch" to "it just reminds me now." This also includes ordinary hydration: when the body is dehydrated, the perception of fatigue and overall discomfort can worsen. It's advisable to drink continuously, not just when thirst appears.
Nutrition plays an important role as well. After exertion, the body needs energy and building materials. Proteins are well known in this regard, but carbohydrates (energy replenishment) and a varied diet with micronutrients are equally important. It's not necessary to count grams, but rather to think about not skimping on food after sports. For many people, it's pleasant to rely on simplicity: quality soup, legumes, eggs, yogurt, nuts, vegetables, fruit—just normal food that makes sense to the body.
Sometimes people ask about massages, rollers, and similar aids. Gentle self-massage or working with a foam roller can relieve the feeling of tension, but it's good not to overdo the pressure. A sensitive muscle usually doesn't need to be "beaten into submission," but rather calmed. Similarly, it's wise to avoid "pushing through" the pain with another heavy workout if movement is significantly limited.
And what if chills get involved? Here, it's good to differentiate scenarios. If someone got chilled after exercising (sweaty shirt, draft, long standing outside), the solution is simple: change into dry clothes, supplement with warm fluids, warm up. If the chills are associated with exhaustion, rest, food, and drink can help. However, if fever, sore throat, cough, or significant fatigue is added, it's better to take a break from sports and take it as a signal that the body might be dealing with an infection. Is it worth the risk when the body is clearly trying to cope with something extra?
In a typical week, it might look like someone goes to exercise in the evening, gets soaked on the way home, quickly showers at home but doesn't eat properly and goes to bed late. The next day, they wake up feeling achy, with sensitive calves, and a feeling of cold that comes in waves. In such a situation, it's easy to blame everything on muscle soreness, but often it's a sum of minor issues: lack of sleep, lack of energy, chilling, and stress. The body then reacts louder. Sometimes changing two things—eating properly and going to bed earlier—makes a surprising difference.
If you're looking for gentle supportive ways that align with a healthy lifestyle, it's worth considering the recovery environment. A comfortable temperature at home, quality textiles that don't irritate the skin, and an overall calmer regime do more than it seems. At the same time, it's good to remind yourself that recovery is not laziness. It is part of movement—just like warming up before it.
Finally, there's one practical tool that always comes in handy: planning workload so that the body has a chance to get used to it. Gradually increasing intensity and regularity are often the best "medicine" for muscle soreness to return in milder forms. Whoever starts gradually usually progresses further than someone who tackles it head-on.
Muscle soreness is not an enemy but a message. Sometimes it says, "Work was done, now give it time," other times it whispers, "Next time, slower," and occasionally it reminds us that the body is not a machine but a living system that also reacts to sleep, food, temperature, and stress. And when chills are added, it's worth pausing for a moment and asking a simple question: Is it just fatigue after exercise, or is the body asking for real rest?
