We’ve seen a handful of people at the club who’ve arrived to their new membership expecting to almost immediately do what they did when they were younger. Sadly, I can recall three separate guys in the 30-40 age group who each ended up collapsed on the floor in need of a sugar-hit. If you’ve had a lay-off for a few months or even years, better to re-build gradually, while monitoring your heart and the way you feel after the workouts.
When you stop exercising, you can begin to lose your fitness surprisingly quickly. Within just a few weeks of inactivity, your cardiovascular endurance, muscle strength and flexibility, can decline noticeably. However, the good news is that if you’ve been fit before, your body has a memory of past fitness levels, just as your muscles have what is called ‘muscle memory’.
So, while it might take some time and effort, you can typically regain your previous level of conditioning more rapidly than someone who is starting from scratch. As always, consistency and a well-structured routine are key to a speedy recovery.
What about weight-gain? If you’ve been a regular exerciser who has been eating to cater for your athletic activity and energy levels and you stop training, you should wisely reduce your calorie input. In other words, eat less if you’re training less or risk piling on the kilos and seeing unwanted changes to your body composition. Once again, the good news is that, if for some reason you can’t exercise for a while, it’s not ideal. But don’t stress about it. Instead, positively look forward to the anticipated rapid recovery upon your return!
