I get that this topic, this… feeling, is weighing on everyone right now:
“WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN TO MY “GAINS” …OR MY LOSSES…? or however you want to term it.
All the things you’ve been working so hard for.
Or maybe you had a competition or an event coming up this year.
Or maybe you were coming back from an injury.
Yes, muscle starts to atrophy, lose fiber size, around the 10-14 day mark and actually…it can happen in as few as 5 days.
This presents as a loss of muscle mass with regards to total body composition but also in how you look and to some extent feel.
Good nutrition can stave off some of this.
Factors that weigh in (no pun intended) on how much you maintain or lose during this period of quarantine and lack of gym time include: age, gender, genetics, how in-shape you were before, etc.
And in terms of recovery, the same things matter – age & gender are the 2 biggest considerations though (see video).
In general, we’ll all be back to our pre-quarantine condition in about a month after we get back to our regular routines.
The more you move and the better your nutrition is during this period though, the faster you’ll get back to your previous levels.
Don’t use this time to go from the bed… to the couch… to the bed.
The most bang for your buck if you want a quick & effective type of exercise to do is HIIT!!
And, it’s the type of activity that has been shown in research to decrease abdominal/visceral fat the most and support healthy endocrine levels (when done correctly).
Instead of getting overly anxious, think of this time as a “reset”. A temporary period that may just launch you into even greater health and fitness.
Fitness, bikini competitors and fitness nutritionists use resets for diet purposes, which is a whole other discussion.
It doesn’t mean going crazy on YOUR reset by forgoing anything that resembles a sweat or good food choices, but more of a “relaxing on the rules”.
A recovery.
And doing different activities during the “reset” is perfect!
For instance, use resistance bands if you’re used to using weights. [I have really good research on that that I’ll post about.]
BEHOLD the most recent body composition screenshot that I did at Life Time.
….and then we’ll see what happens when we go back, for comparison and “research” sake.
I’m nowhere near the level of activity I was before. So, it’s not just muscle mass but I’m VERY interested in changes with the other stats like fat, VO2 (<- breathing, air, “hello”??).
In the meantime, don’t despair!
Don’t get discouraged!
Unless you are truly on bedrest, you will be okay and possibly even better than before.
What are your thoughts on this?
