Sometimes sports come in waves: for months you’ve been sweating three times a week, only to get off the couch for a while. How long does it take to get back to a level before you start exercising?
To determine your fitness when it comes to endurance, something you build through cardio exercise like running or cycling, it’s important to look at V02 max, which is the amount of oxygen available to you during exercise. VO2 max drops quickly: After just two weeks, I lost 10 percent and after eight weeks of no training, I’m back to the level before you started.
The effect of strength training wears off less quickly. After twelve weeks of no training, your muscle mass has decreased dramatically, but you are still more muscular than before you started training. However, the amount of muscle tissue decreases by 13 percent after just two weeks of no exercise.
In short, you start losing stamina and muscle strength after 48 hours of no exercise, but you only see the effect after two to three weeks without cardio or six to ten weeks without strength training.
Bronn (nen): Science alert
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