How Quickly Do We Become Unfit? By Dan Gordon, Anglia Ruskin University and Justin Roberts, Anglia Ruskin University via Natural Blaze
Getting in shape isn’t easy. But after all that hard work, how long do we actually maintain it? Turns out that even the great effort we put into training, taking a bit of time off can mean that we become “unfit” much faster than it took us to actually get in shape.
To understand how the body becomes “unfit”, we first need to understand how we become fit. The key to becoming fitter – whether that’s improving cardiovascular fitness or muscular strength – is to exceed “habitual load”. This means doing more than our body is used to. The stress that this has on our body makes us adapt and become more tolerant, leading to higher fitness levels.
The time it takes to get fit depends on a number of factors, including fitness levels, age, how hard you work, and even environment. But some studies do indicate that even just six sessions of interval trainingcan lead to increases in maximal oxygen uptake (V02 max) – a measure of overall fitness — and improve how efficiently our body is able to fuel itself using the sugar stored in our cells during exercise.
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For strength training, some gains in muscle force can be shown in as little as two weeks, but changes in muscle size won’t be seen until around 8-12 weeks.
Cardiovascular fitness
When we stop training, how quickly we lose fitness also depends on many factors – including the type of fitness we’re talking about (such as strength or cardiovascular fitness).
As an example, let’s look at a marathon runner, who is in peak athletic fitness and can run a marathon in two hours and 30 minutes. This person spends five to six days a week training, running a total of 90km. They’ve also spent the last 15 years developing this level of fitness.
