How Long is This Going to Take?

We've all heard about how quickly you lose fitness once you become sedentary. As a rule of thumb, the old adage says that it takes twice as long as the layoff period to return to your fitness peak. But will it really take 1 year to return to where I was? After these last 4 weeks of slogging through workouts, I beginning to think that maybe it will.

The last issue of Triathlete mag (Dec' 10) gave me some hope. Dr. Jeffrey Sankoff wrote a little blurb on "Memory Muscle" addressing exactly this question. Have I lost everything after my 6 month layoff despite 7 years of previous hard work? Scientists from Norway found that muscles in previously trained mice remained "primed" to return to fitness after a layoff, despite a loss in muscle mass. It seems that muscles do have a memory, and this may help seasoned athletes regain fitness faster than untrained ones after a sedentary period. I can only hope this proves to be true for humans!
http://www.doctorsolve.com/blog/2010/08/a-new-kind-of-muscle-memory.html

So what is detraining and how fast does it happen? Detraining is the loss of fitness due to inactivity, occurring in as little as 2-3 weeks. First, our VO2 max decreases, or to put it simply, cardiovascular fitness. You start huffing and puffing. Then, you lose muscle mass. In addition, your body is less effective at fat-burning and stores less glycogen. It can take up to 6 months to regain fitness after a long layoff. Easy come, easy go.

From what I've read, it's always better to reduce training than stop altogether. This prevents a dramtic reduction in fitness and also allows athletes to bounce back faster. And when returning to training after a layoff, always start slow. Consistency, not intensity speed or distance, is the key.

Links on Detraining:
http://www.roy-stevenson.com/retraining.html
http://pfitzinger.com/labreports/detraining.shtml
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-267--13390-0,00.html
http://www.vermontfit.com/?p=detraining