COVID Isolation and Your Workout Results
🏋🏻♀️Isolating because of COVID? Do you know what muscle memory is?❓
💥Many people have had times when they had to go long periods without training due to work commitments or travel, or because of injuries and illnesses… I have two pieces of news…one bad and one good…😆
💥Let’s start with the bad news: The bad news is that this “time away” causes the muscles to naturally atrophy… This atrophy can happen even faster in cases of immobilization due to some kind of trauma…
💥Now for the good news: Don’t worry! NOT ALL IS LOST! Have you ever heard of muscle memory? A recent study concluded that the phenomenon of MUSCLE MEMORY can largely be explained by the fact that muscles maintain the same number of muscle nuclei during muscle loss or lack of training.
.
💥These muscle cell nuclei seem to act as “memory cells.” They “remember” how much muscle mass you had before you stopped training. THEREFORE, the longer you’ve trained in your life, the longer it will take to lose the fitness you’ve achieved.
Regaining Muscle Size
Muscle size is regained more quickly by people who train, but it’s worth remembering that the load should be increased gradually to avoid the risk of injury!
A note: aside from injuries or illnesses, I personally don’t think there’s any reason to completely stop physical activity, even during vacation. In fact, with more free time on vacation, you could devote even more time to it! Always train consciously! Your health will thank you! ✅
How Long to Train After Isolation
The rate of muscle atrophy depends on your current fitness level and how long you’ve been inactive.
The more muscle mass you have, the harder it will be to maintain while inactive, and the more you’ll lose. In other words, healthy people tend to lose muscle mass more quickly than unhealthy people.
Some studies show that you can start losing muscle after a week of inactivity — if you’re unable to move, you could lose up to 1 kg.
Another study showed that even if you’re not bedridden, muscle size decreases by approximately 11% after ten days.
However, before you panic about losing muscle because of isolation, remember the muscle memory I mentioned in the previous section! Vacation won’t hurt you—and we all need physical and mental rest!
And you don’t need to stop physical activity completely while enjoying your vacation! Remember, it’s a lifestyle! The important thing to understand is that the “worst” muscle atrophy usually occurs during an injury or when you stop using your muscles completely for a long time.
