How long does it take to lose fitness

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Each of us has missed a workout at some point. There is nothing wrong. Stress levels increase with intense exertion, so a good workout program always requires a few days of rest. The only problem is that three days imperceptibly flow into six, and then into all 10 days of evading training. At such moments, a reasonable question arises: how long does it take to lose the acquired physical form?

Physical fitness is lost in several directions at once: muscle strength and heart endurance. The speed of the process depends on the length of rest and the level of our physical fitness.

If you exercise regularly

It is much easier to regain your former shape after a long break if you regularly exercise 4-6 times a week for a long time. For example, if you train several times a week for a year (you can be classified as an athlete), your muscle memory will allow you to regain shape faster.

Loss of muscle strength

Much more depends on what caused the break. If a person is practically motionless (sick), then muscle strength will begin to be lost after a 2-3 week break. If a person leads an active lifestyle and exposes himself to light loads (even at the level of everyday situations), then it will take 3-5 weeks before he significantly loses strength.

For those in doubt, I will say that these things are scientifically proven. The journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise has published the results of several studies, where the subject of study was athletes, rowers and weightlifters.

Interestingly, in all three groups of athletes, the main muscle fibers did not change at all even after a month's break in training. But at the same time, the specialized muscles required for a particular sport began to lose shape after two weeks of inactivity.

For example, athletes lost a significant amount of slow muscle fibers during the break. And weightlifters lost some of their hard-won fast muscle fibers.

To summarize, it turns out that our body is trying to maintain overall muscle strength as long as it can. But the special skills required for specific exercises disappear much faster. We can say that the human body strives for universality.

Loss of stamina

Unfortunately, we lose endurance much faster than muscle strength. One study found that four weeks of abstinence from training resulted in a 20 percent reduction in the amount of oxygen an athlete can absorb per unit of time (VO2 max).

There are other studies with similar results. For example, it was found that after 12 days of rest, VO2 max falls by 7%, and the concentration of enzymes in the blood that are responsible for the level of endurance decreases by 50%.

It is worth noting that although endurance is lost much faster than muscle strength, it is easier to restore it.

If you are just starting to exercise

If you have recently started exercising, then try to avoid extended rest. You are not yet in the habit of exercising, so your brain will look for any reason to skip a class. As soon as you follow his lead, it will be difficult for you to get yourself back on track.

Loss of muscle strength

Interestingly, it is much easier for beginners to maintain physical strength after long breaks than for those who have been practicing for a long time.

A group of guys who hadn't done anything before were asked to take a three week break in the middle of a 15 week training program. When these guys finished the program (after the break), they had about the same level of muscle strength as those who did not take a break. Another study found that those who went through a four-month training program and rested for six months after that managed to retain 50% of the acquired muscle strength.

Beginners lose concentric force faster (when the muscles contract, overcoming resistance - lifting the barbell) and more slowly eccentric force (arising from resistance to external force - holding the bar with the effort of the biceps).

In the course of observation of 13 guys who just started training, it was found that three months after completing a three-month training program, they retained eccentric strength, but almost completely lost dynamic (concentric) strength.

Loss of stamina

The cardiovascular system is more sensitive to long breaks in training. One of the best studies on this topic found that the VO2 max level achieved in two months of hard training was completely lost after just four weeks off.

Other factors

In addition to your fitness level, which determines how quickly you get back in shape, there are other factors that also play a role.

First, you can't discount a person's age. If you take people 20-30 years old and 65-72 years old, then the older group will lose muscle strength twice as fast.

Secondly, the reason why a person rests matters. Here are the results of an interesting study. Volunteers who did not play sports were injected with hormones that caused the person to become stressed from injury and illness. Over the next 28 days, these individuals lost 28% of their total muscle strength. And this is much more than the average level.