If you’ve been injured or ill and missed out on working out, don’t panic – new research reveals that muscles ‘remember’
It’s official: muscles remember. The effects of resistance training can stay in the muscles for up to two months, even if an individual takes a break through illness or injury, says new research.
It is often thought that the effects of exercise are short-lived, and a break from the gym for just a few weeks can cause stress over muscle loss for some people.
However, researchers at the University of Jyväskylä in Finland have found that the effects of resistance training persist in muscles for up to two months and the gains are fast when training is started again after the break. In essence, muscles remember!
Using advanced mass spectrometry equipment, the researchers found that training actually gets encoded into the muscle proteins.
“For the first time, we have shown that muscles ‘remember’ previous resistance training at the protein level for at least two and a half months,” said lead researcher, Professor Juha Hulmi from the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences.
“So, even though muscles eventually shrink back to their original size during a long training break, a memory trace of previous training remains in the muscles. This can make it easier to start training again.
So don’t stress about having to take a break: your muscles will be back to full strength – and size – before you know it!
