Studies show how long it takes our body to “forget” about training – Acorda Cidade

When a person has never carried out a training routine, it is really difficult to start. But when this routine already exists and, for some reason, it had to be on standby, when it resumes, the feeling is that the body responds better and faster. This can be called “muscle memory” – which is a combination of muscular and neural factors, registered by the nervous system, which tend to facilitate the resumption of exercise, even after some time.

“Once your body has already experienced a movement and has already been in the best physical shape, the organism knows the neural pathway, the production of necessary substances and even training knowledge”, says Luiz Evandro, professor of physical education and Technical Director of the Alpha Fitness Network.

Research published in the journal Cell Physiology showed that there is evidence that muscle tissue can be “primed” by previous positive experiences with strength training. This preparation can increase adaptive capabilities to a subsequent stimulus, even after long periods away from the gym. “This positive experience helps in the hypertrophy process and in gaining strength. And it is much more related to a neuromuscular aspect, rather than exclusive to the muscle itself”, adds the professor.

Positive adaptations in our body take a few weeks for muscle memory to become recorded. In other words, there is no point training for a week and waiting for the brain to send information for the muscles to grow, if you trained for a short time and did few repetitions.

Another study related to the topic, carried out by Brown University in the United States and published in Frontiers in Physiology, showed that these positive neuromuscular adaptations happen, on average, over a period of four weeks. The time it takes for the body to “record” a workout depends on several factors, including the type of training, intensity, as well as the experience and physical state of the practitioner.

“In general, strength training takes longer to record than aerobic training. This occurs because strength training causes micro-injuries to the muscle fibers, which need to be repaired before the muscle can adapt”, says Luiz Evandro. More intense workouts cause more micro-injuries and therefore take longer to record.

Brown’s research also showed that, after two weeks of inactivity, the body begins to suffer neuromuscular losses, including a decrease in muscle mass and strength. If inactivity persists, these losses worsen and can also harm coordination and learning capacity.

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