How Injury Begins

Amateur athlete is highly susceptible to injury because the muscles, tendons and ligaments are weak. Often the force applied to them is greater than their inherent strength. Several hours after training sessions is when muscle soreness is likely to set in. Soreness takes several hours to surface because the body must take steps to repair muscular damage. First is the trauma resulting inflammation. Second, fluid is leaked into gaps between muscle fibers to facilitate the healing process, creating an edema (swelling).

Since training thickens the muscles and makes them more resilient, the better condition the athlete is in, the less severe the soreness will be. Training thickens muscles, tendons and ligaments, making them more resilient. The musculature can sustain higher workloads without breaking down. Severe muscle tears occur more often in a beginning athlete due to the muscle being taxed so heavily that it loses its ability to relax and stretch.

The serious athlete, on the other hand, usually suffer fatigue-related injuries rather than the tearing of unconditioned structure.