Getting back to exercise after a break

One day, you're getting stronger, hitting the gym consistently, and feeling good. Suddenly, life strikes you down. Whether it’s social commitments, work, illness, injury, or burnout, that once fire-like motivation has fizzled out.

One day off turned into a week, then two, and now you have no idea what to do. It's at that point that you join a club many of us have been a part of – the comeback club.

Every comeback journey is unique, so it's important to address your needs accordingly. If you’re returning to fitness after an injury or are a complete newbie to working out, don’t be a hero. Make sure you have the green light from your physician before tapping “start” on your Coach session.

Whatever your reason for taking a break from exercise, you most likely won’t be able to pick up at the intensity where you left off. Even if you’re feeling super pumped, motivated, and like you can just jump right back in, it doesn’t mean you should.

To better understand how taking an extended break from training, or detraining as it’s often referred to, let's break it down on both a physical and mental level.

But don’t forget, as with all things fitness – when it comes to detraining, it’s incredibly individualized. Many effects depend on how long your break from exercise was and also how fit you were when you stopped.

Physical effects

Cardiovascular
A decline in cardiorespiratory fitness can occur pretty rapidly. In the short term, a couple of days off for a cold does not have much impact, but once you reach that 2- to 4-week threshold, the cards start to stack against you.

Here’s a quick overview of what’s going on in your body:

• A decline in VO2 max: Almost immediately and by up to 3-4% in those first two weeks of inactivity.
• Decreased blood and plasma volume: Without the exercise-induced stress placed on your heart, your blood and plasma volume could drop as much as 12% within the first 4 weeks.¹
• Increase in maximal and submaximal heart rate: Since less blood returns to your heart with each beat, your body tries to compensate by boosting your heart rate.
• Your blood pressure increases almost immediately as your blood vessels adapt to the slower blood flow. According to research, just after a month of detraining, your blood pressure could go to a level where it would be as if you’ve never exercised at all.²

And these are just a few of several cardiovascular processes and areas of your body that are impacted by taking a break from exercise.

Strength changes
Unlike cardiovascular fitness, strength has stronger staying powers once you stop exercising. But that doesn’t mean your muscles will flex on forever without training – a lot of it depends on how sedentary (and for how long) you’ve become.

One study found that young people could lose up to a third of their muscle strength after not using their legs for two weeks, leaving them on par strength-wise with their 40-50-year-old counterparts.³ And unfortunately for the regular gym goers, the more muscle you have, the more you lose when you become inactive or injured.

What else is going on in your body? Your muscle glycogen and water stores shrink, which may make your pumped-up look slightly more deflated – or muscle atrophy. But don’t worry, this effect should go away when you resume training, and your glycogen stores quickly refill.⁴

And despite all the downsides to taking a break from your training, it’s not all bad news. Although your strength might be depleted after an exercise hiatus, muscle memory helps your body rebound to its previous fitness levels. Not all is lost!

Psychological effects

Here’s the raw truth – coming back after a break is hard. Sometimes, it will make you doubt yourself and your ability to perform, and your overall self-confidence can plummet.

It could also lead to additional cognitive and mental health drawbacks. Whenever we move, key neurotransmitters are activated that boost motivation, mood, focus, and reaction times. And when we’re sedentary, we miss out on all those brain-changing effects of exercise.

But that’s not all. Exercise delivers a plethora of benefits that range from managing stress to anti-aging. The key here is to try and find a way to simply move your body, even if your favorite workout routine might need to be put on hold.

We’ve covered what you can expect physically and mentally; now let’s dive into how you can jump back into your exercise routine after a break.

1. Stop procrastinating

There’s no need to wait until Monday or major events like New Year's to start chasing your goals – just start. Whether that’s hitting your Base, going for a run, or tapping start on that Coach day, just get out there and get after it. Bonus points – thanks to those feel-good endorphins, you’ll start feeling great almost immediately!

2. Be humble

Yes, maybe you used to be able to lift XYZ or run a 5k so fast, but that’s not where you are now, and that’s completely okay! Acknowledge it, accept it, and make a game plan. Here are a few ways you can adapt your training routine (besides just asking the Coach):

• Tune down the intensity: you don’t need to train hard every session to see the benefits of exercise. Plus, going full throttle right from the jump is bound to set you up for injury or burnout. Remember, when you’re getting back to a routine, it’s all about consistency.
• Start with bodyweight or no weights: when you’re easing back into exercise, it’s best to follow one of the golden rules of Progressive Overload: increasing volume before intensity.
• Try the walk/jog method for cardio: if you’re looking to build your endurance back up, try implementing a walk/jog method and monitor your HR levels. Focus on your intensity zones and progress from there as you move from a walk/jog to a jog/run.

3. Plan in plenty of R&R

Rest and recovery are just as imperative as the training itself. Plan out your training week with 2-3 training sessions and a mix of active and passive recovery to ensure your body is building, adapting, and recovering adequately.

4. Get your mindset right

When you’re making a comeback, it’s all too common for self-doubt to creep in. Don’t let it. You can improve your performance and mindset by applying a few tactics to boost your self-confidence. Read all about some key strategies to boost self-confidence here.

5. Get support

Training with others can elevate your success by holding you accountable and adding an extra element of social fun to the mix. And when you’re easing back into a routine, a healthy dose of fun could be a game-changer for staying consistent.

6. Track your progress

Tracking your progress can be an incredibly motivating and empowering tool. Opt for a few different methods, such as logging your weights/distance in an app or jotting it down in a journal. Not only is this a great way to tell if your fitness regime is effective, but the feeling you get when you’re improving and progressing towards your goals is truly unmatched.

Whatever your reason for taking a break from exercise, the decision to start or restart can be the hardest part. Of course, as it goes in life, we can’t control everything, but we can control how and when we decide to come back to exercise.

Start slow, ease into a routine, and progress at your pace. Find a workout buddy and make it fun – fitness should be something you enjoy and stick with for the long term. Finally and most importantly – track your progress! When you see that you’re performing more repetitions or running further and feel yourself getting stronger – there’s nothing like it. You become unstoppable.