How long does it take to lose your gains?
Taking time off from your regular workout routine for any reason can be a challenge, and it's common to worry about losing the progress you've made in your fitness journey. Whether you're recovering from an injury, dealing with a personal issue that leaves you with less time and energy, or facing any other circumstance that makes it difficult to maintain your regular workout schedule, it's normal to be worried about months or even years of training going down the drain. But how long does it take to really for deconditioning to really set in?
The amount of deconditioning you experience during a period of inactivity depends on a few factors: how fit you were before the period of inactivity, how long the period of inactivity lasts, and what quality is being measured (strength, muscle mass, or aerobic capacity). When it comes to overall strength, highly trained athletes (3 or more years of training history) can maintain strength levels for up to 3 weeks of no training, but decay rates will increase after that (1). A 2017 study confirmed this, when it found that young adult males retained strength gains from a 10-week resistance training program when followed by 2 weeks of inactivity (2). Now, what if you’re less concerned about how much you can lift after some time off, and more concerned with how much it looks like you can lift? This is a little bit of a trickier question, because the levels of glycogen in the muscles fluctuate rapidly in response to the initiation of training or periods of inactivity. For example, when a beginner begins a resistance training regimen, their muscle glycogen stores rise rapidly, increasing the amount of water in the muscle, and increasing the perceived size of the muscle before meaningful hypertrophy has actually taken place. Similarly, when detraining occurs the muscle glycogen levels drop rapidly, leading to muscles that appear somewhat smaller. When this change in water content is accounted for, brief (~3 weeks) absences from training appear not to cause significant atrophy and potentially promote greater hypertrophy upon return to training (3). When it comes to endurance, gains seem to be lost a bit faster. Studies indicate that endurance performance goes down by about 4 to 25% after 3-4 weeks in trained athletes (4). It is important to remember that all of the data above involves athletes going from training consistently to abruptly ceasing activity altogether. It is likely that if you were to maintain some sort of physical activity while access to a gym is limited, you could keep any deconditioning effects at bay for even longer.
Luckily, it takes much less work to maintain your fitness than it does to increase it. Both muscle mass and strength can be maintained while volume is decreased to as little as one third of previous training volume (5). The same can be said for endurance capacity, although it is typically easier to maintain an aerobically challenging regimen given the minimal equipment needed. However, if a reduction in training is absolutely necessary, training-induced adaptations can be readily maintained for several weeks during periods of reduced training frequencies (no more than a 20-30% reduction) (6).
To make a long story short, do what you can given your circumstances and don’t worry too much about losing all your fitness. Doing anything at all is infinitely better for your results than moping around on the couch because you can’t do the exact training regimen that you are used to. In fact, the break may actually do you some good if you use it as an opportunity to work on things you don’t normally work on.
Written by: Chris Bonilla, Black Iron Nutrition Performance Coach
References
McMaster, D.T., Gill, N., Cronin, J. et al. The Development, Retention and Decay Rates of Strength and Power in Elite Rugby Union, Rugby League and American Football. Sports Med 43, 367–384 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-013-0031-3
Hwang, P. S., Andre, T. L., Mckinley-Barnard, S. K., Marroquín, F. E. M., Gann, J. J., Song, J. J., & Willoughby, D. S. (2017). Resistance Training–Induced Elevations in Muscular Strength in Trained Men Are Maintained After 2 Weeks of Detraining and Not Differentially Affected by Whey Protein Supplementation. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 31(4), 869–881. doi: 10.1519/jsc.0000000000001807
Fisher, James & Steele, James & Smith, Dave. (2013). Evidence-Based Resistance Training Recommendations for Muscular Hypertrophy. Medicina Sportiva. 17. 217-235. 10.5604/17342260.1081302.
Bosquet, Laurent & Mujika, I. (2012). Detraining.
Bickel, C. S., Cross, J. M., & Bamman, M. M. (2011). Exercise Dosing to Retain Resistance Training Adaptations in Young and Older Adults. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 43(7), 1177–1187. doi: 10.1249/mss.0b013e318207c15d
Mujika, I., Padilla, S. Detraining: Loss of Training-Induced Physiological and Performance Adaptations. Part II. Sports Med 30, 145–154 (2000). https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200030030-00001