Losing fitness and strength

emmab0902
emmab0902 Posts: 2,338 Member
edited November 10 in Fitness and Exercise
How long without exercising does it take to lose significant fitness or strength?

Replies

  • fxst78
    fxst78 Posts: 221 Member
    Depends what you class as significant, but 2-3 weeks and you can start to lose fitness and strength. It will however come back quite quickly when you start up again. The longer you go without, the longer to get back to where you were.
  • thefuzz1290
    thefuzz1290 Posts: 777 Member
    ^^^^
    This.

    Also, it depends on how long you've been working out as well. If you're an athlete that has been training for years, taking 6 weeks off won't be a significant drop off for general fitness (now competition fitness is another story). If you've been working out for 6 weeks, taking 2 weeks off will really hurt.
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    I also believe that it has to do with the type of exercise that you are taking a break from. In the past when I was a mostly cardio type exerciser, anything longer than a week off and I gained weight, gained inches, and felt winded the first day back. On the other hand, now that I am a 4-5 day per week weight lifter with not much cardio, I seem to be able to go longer without issue. I was sick for a full 2 weeks in January, and when I got back into it, I weighed the same, didn't gain any inches, only had to decrease weight on compound lifts by 5 pounds or so, and could still run a 5k without taking a break.
  • hyperkate
    hyperkate Posts: 178 Member
    6weeks to build, 2 weeks to start losing.
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